The 2023 campaign did not go according to plan for Von Miller. The future Hall of Famer’s second Bills campaign included a lengthy recovery from an ACL tear and finished without a sack being recorded. 
A key factor in Miller’s ability to rebound in 2024 will of course be the status of his knee. A return to health could pave the way for a bounce-back season, although at age 35 expectations will be lowered with respect to pass rush production. In any event, positive signs have been seen this spring.
“I have continued to grind and continued to work on my knee,” Miller said when speaking to the media (via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk). “Everything revolves around my health, the way my knee is feeling So far, I’ve been feeling great. I’ve been practicing without a knee brace. That’s something that I just could not do last year.”
The longtime Broncos Pro Bowler made just three tackles last season while playing a rotational role. That stands in stark contrast to the eight sacks and 27 QB pressures he registered the year before, figures which potentially offered a preview of his time in Buffalo. Four years remain on Miller’s pact, which was restructured in March as part of the team’s multitude of cost-shedding moves ahead of free agency. As a result, he is due $8.86MM in 2024 base compensation with the potential to earn more via incentives.
No guaranteed salary exists on Miller’s contract beyond this season, and a post-June 1 release would generate notable cap savings as early as 2025. The extent to which he rebounds during the coming campaign will therefore be worth watching closely. Buffalo lost Leonard Floyd in free agency, but the team still has Gregory Rousseau and A.J. Epenesa along with veteran addition Dawuane Smoot and fifth-round rookie Javon Solomon on the edge. Miller will compete for snaps as part of that contingent.
“During the season, once we start getting in the mix, in games and stuff, I think I should be good to go,” the latter added. “I think my last three games of the [2023] season, Miami, Pittsburgh and K.C., were my best games of the year. I hate that it waited all the way to that point, but that’s just what it took, and I’ve just been trying to use that to springboard into this season.”