Bills notebook: Ed Oliver, Matt Milano return to practice; Buffalo prepares for Stefon Diggs
Oliver, linebacker Matt Milano (pectoral) and right tackle Spencer Brown (calf) were limited on Wednesday. It was the first practice back for Oliver since Sept. 10, and the first for Milano since getting injured in the Week 2 game against the New York Jets.
When it came to Ed Oliver’s ankle injury, the Buffalo Bills’ defensive tackle heard some of the rumors off social media.
“I heard I fell off a horse, a horse hurt me, I heard all kinds of stuff,” Oliver said. “But I can promise you, somebody stepped on me at practice.”
Oliver wore a walking boot for a stretch before he was able to stop using it last week. On Wednesday, Oliver returned to practice.
Oliver, linebacker Matt Milano (pectoral) and right tackle Spencer Brown (calf) were limited on Wednesday. It was the first practice back for Oliver since Sept. 10, and the first for Milano since getting injured in the Week 2 game against the New York Jets.
Bills linebacker Matt Milano practiced Wednesday for the first time since getting injured against the Jets in Week 2.
Joshua Bessex, Buffalo News
Bills coach Sean McDermott said that group is “improving,” however, “all of them will take on a day-by-day basis at this point for the week.”
In addition, tight end Jackson Hawes (ankle) was limited and linebacker Dorian Williams (knee) did not practice. Defensive end Joey Bosa was limited for veteran rest.
As Oliver works his way back, his goal is to return to the player he was Week 1 against the Baltimore Ravens.
“That’s the main thing, and that’s the only thing that’s really on my mind, is to come back and be dominant, how I was when I left,” Oliver said.
His strong start made the injury frustrating, but Oliver isn’t focused on that.
“It is what it is,” Oliver said. “It’s part of the game. Obviously, no one wants that to happen, but it is what it is.”
Oliver confirmed that he’s day to day, but he is “taking steps in the right direction.”
A date with Diggs
Former Bills wide receiver Stefon Diggs is making his return to Orchard Park.Diggs spent four years with the Bills before they traded him to the Houston Texans in 2024. He spent one season there, playing eight games before tearing his ACL in late October.
But Diggs has rebounded with the Patriots. He’s fresh off a game in which he had six catches on seven targets for 101 yards. That performance certainly caught McDermott’s attention as he prepares to go against his former receiver.
“Yeah, very impressed. Not surprised, but very impressed in terms of how he looks,” McDermott said Wednesday. “He looks great. Very few can come off of an injury like that from a timing standpoint, especially that first year, and look the way he looks. But I’m not surprised. He’s a heck of an athlete, and he works extremely hard.”
The Bills played against Diggs last year when the receiver was with the Texans. With that in mind, quarterback Josh Allen downplayed Sunday’s meeting.
“I mean, we played them last year, so I don’t think it’s anything super crazy,” Allen said. “But obviously, being back in Buffalo, who knows if the emotions are going to be heightened for him, or for the fans, or whatever it is. But we’re just gonna go out there and try to perform the best we can.”
Allen said the Bills’ defense is primed for Diggs. While Allen may know Diggs’ tendencies on the field, so do the Bills’ defenders.
“If they’ve got any questions, I can give as much as I can, but I don’t know how helpful it would be,” Allen said. “But he’s obviously still a fantastic player, and you got to kind of know where he’s at on the football field at all times.”
And the Buffalo defense is expecting a big game from the Patriots wide out.
“Just knowing who he is, knowing the competitor that he is, he’s gonna be amped up, excited,” Oliver said. “He’s probably gonna want the ball. He’s going to want to do Stef things: the special catches, the YAC (yards after catch) after the play, we’ll expect that out of him, just as when he was here, how special of a player he was.
“I’m pretty sure you’re going to get that Stef coming Sunday night.”
New England injury report
For the Patriots, linebacker K’Lavon Chaisson (knee) and safety Jaylinn Hawkins (hamstring) did not practice Wednesday.The following players were limited: defensive tackle Christian Barmore (not injury related), defensive tackle Milton Williams (ankle) and guard Jared Wilson (ankle/knee).