Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550/WBEN) - An electric presence of the Buffalo Bills' pass rush in the early stages of the 2023 season will be unavailable this weekend in London, England when the team plays the Jacksonville Jaguars.
During his meeting with the assembled media in London on Friday, Bills head coach Sean McDermott confirmed that defensive end Greg Rousseau would miss Sunday's game due to a foot injury. The third-year pass rusher has yet to practice this week with the team due to his ailment.
It is unclear at what point Rousseau injured his foot, but he did play 57% of the defensive snaps this past Sunday against the Miami Dolphins, where he registered three total tackles, two tackles for loss, two quarterback hits, two sacks and a pass defended.
With Rousseau unable to go on Sunday, the attention then turns to the health status and availability of veteran pass rusher Von Miller. The 34-year-old returned to practice earlier this week after starting the 2023 season on the Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list as he recovered from surgery to repair a torn ACL in his right knee.
Despite McDermott liking Miller's progress in the first two days of practice, he says the team continues to approach his health "one day at a time."
"I think the biggest thing is the first day when you're coming off of an injury like that, you just want to get through it. I applaud him for making it through that first practice, because that's a milestone in and of itself because of the months and months, and the hours of rehabbing. I think that's really where we're at," McDermott said with reporters on Friday. "I think Day 2 was better than Day 1, and he looks like he's continuing to get more comfortable."
The Bills are officially listing Miller as "questionable" for Sunday's contest.
Miller still has some time before he needs to be activated to the active 53-man roster. He is eligible to return for the next three games against the Jaguars, New York Giants and New England Patriots before the team would potentially have to place him on Injured Reserve if he's not ready to return.
Also questionable to play Sunday is cornerback Christian Benford, who has been dealing with a shoulder injury suffered in last week's win over the Dolphins. The second-year corner was able to finish the game despite the injury, but was limited with his availability through the rest of the afternoon.
Sunday's kickoff at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London is set for 9:30 a.m. ET with pregame coverage on WGR starting at 6 a.m. ET.