Buffalo Bills linebacker Matt Milano (58) smiles after making a tackle during the second half of the Buffalo Bills wild card game against the Denver Broncos at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park on Jan. 12, 2025. Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Bills' head coach declares three players OUT for Week 6 matchup vs. Falcons

Originally posted on Buffalo Bills on SI | By Alex Brasky | Last updated Oct 11, 2025 2:52 PM ET

The Buffalo Bills have battled through the first five weeks of the season without the services of several significant contributors, compiling a 4-1 record despite missing a few key players.

And Buffalo will once again be without three familiar names in Week 6 against the Falcons.

Linebacker Matt Milano (pectoral) will miss his second consecutive game, per head coach Sean McDermott , while rookie defensive tackle T.J. Sanders (knee) and safety Damar Hamlin (pectoral) have both been placed on Injured Reserve, which will require them to miss the Bills’ next four games.

Former All-Pro’s injury lingers

Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Milano sustained his injury during a Week 2 win over the New York Jets, exiting the game after halftime and subsequently missing the team’s next two games. He attempted to return during a Week 5 defeat at the hands of the New England Patriots, but left the game due to a reaggravation of his ailment.

Fellow Bills' LB Dorian Williams also missed last week’s game against the Patriots, leaving veteran Shaq Thompson to assume a starting role defensively in Milano’s stead. In addition, the Bills signed undrafted free agent LB Jimmy Ciarlo to the team’s 53-man roster for added depth leading into Week 5.

Williams appears set to return to game action this week after getting in a full practice on Friday afternoon. While the fourth-year pro has had an underwhelming start to the season, his return would help lessen the blow of Milano’s absence.

The former All-Pro has appeared in three games this season, totaling 15 tackles, including one for a loss, a quarterback hit and a sack.

Injured Reserve getting crowded

Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Sanders and Hamlin join a growing list of Bills’ players to be placed on IR this season, as Sanders is now set to have surgery after a knee injury held him out of Buffalo’s Week 5 defeat at the hands of the New England Patriots. Hamlin sustained his injury during practice this week, with both players’ injuries leaving notable holes on the team’s depth chart.

Sanders had filled in for injured DT Ed Oliver (ankle) after Oliver was injured during practice ahead of a Week 2 win over the New York Jets and subsequently missed the team’s next four games. The rookie was a relative non-factor while seeing an increase in playing time, finishing the first five-game stretch of his career with just two tackles while being held without a sack or a QB hit.

Hamlin’s production this season has come on special teams, where the Bills will look to replace his 35% snap share.

This article first appeared on Buffalo Bills on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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