ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Entering Week 6, the Buffalo Bills defense looks a lot different than it did to start the season.
By now, the Bills have lost a starter at each level of the defense. DaQuan Jones on the defensive line, Matt Milano at linebacker, Tre White at cornerback--all are on injured reserve. Jones (pec) and Milano (leg) suffered injuries Sunday against the Jaguars in London that required surgery, while White tore his Achilles two weeks ago against the Dolphins.
White's teammates said he was rounding into a form resembling his former All-Pro self, while Milano and Jones were playing at an All-Pro level before going down against Jacksonville.
Despite losing all of those pieces, head coach Sean McDermott says the team's mentality stays the same: next man up.
"You know, you lose a good football player, but as a I said before, you look and you say, 'Hey, alright, come on, let's go, next person up. It's your time to shine here,' " McDermott said Wednesday.
"Overall, it's the job of the person who's stepping in to do the job and we have full confidence in that player, whoever that player is," McDermott added. "A piece of it is playing for those guys too because they were a big piece of this team and still are, but can only help so much, so we play for them."
One player working his way back from injury is edge rusher Von Miller, who played 20 snaps in his season debut against Jacksonville.
Miller acknowledged that this team and this defense just aren't the same without guys like Milano, Jones, and White.
"It's impossible to replace them and have an exact copy of what they do on and off the football field for the Buffalo Bills. It's impossible," Miller said.
But Miller also echoed the same "next man up" mentality as his coach.
"It's just our league," Miller said. "It just creates another opportunity for the next man up to shine his light, be successful, earn his way in the league."
Even with the injuries, the Bills defense managed to keep Buffalo in the game against Jacksonville, holding the Jaguars to 11 points until late midway through the 4th quarter.
Miller believes the the Bills have the pieces not just keep the defense afloat, but to also keep alive the dreams the team has for this season.
"Brandon Beane and the front office, they've done a great job of building this team," Miller said. "We've got so much depth, and so many different people in so many different places that that at the end of the day, we will be ok. We won't be as good as we were with Tre White and DaQuan Jones and Matt Milano, of course, but we'll still be able to compete at a high level."
An opportunity Sunday for Miller and the rest of the pass rushers to set the tone for the defense going up against a Giants offensive line that's allowed the most sacks in the NFL, with 30 on the season.
Kickoff against the Giants is set for 8:20 p.m. in Orchard Park, with the Sunday Night Football broadcast being carried on Channel 2.