Matt Milano
Before you send the mafia after me, let me explain my reasoning here. The Bills have begun building their contingency plan for life after Matt Milano, whether that’s in 2025 or when he becomes a free agent in 2027. He won’t be a Bill forever, and if they continue with another roster purge next year, he’ll likely be one of the first to go.
The Bills drafted three linebackers in three straight drafts. Terrel Bernard, Dorian Williams, and Edefuan Olofoshio. Williams and Olofoshio weren’t drafted to sit and wait for years behind Milano, and the Bills view those three as their future. If Milano can’t recover from his injury quickly enough, the Bills could view him as a liability to their Super Bowl aspirations and put all their eggs into the younger guys.
If released, the Bills would save $9.9M designating him as a post-June 1st release, according to Spotrac. Of course, this all depends on how he recovers from his injury and performs on the field. However, you can’t deny the fact that the Bills are prepared to move on from their star linebacker if that time comes.
The good news is, Matt Milano was practicing at minicamp. The bad news, though, is that he likely still won’t be 100% by the time Week 1 comes around. If that’s the case, the Bills risk rushing another star defender onto the field too early and ruining their rehab.