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          Bills' Tre'Davious White takes another step toward return from torn ACL

          • Alaina Getzenberg, ESPNOct 12, 2022, 09:21 PM
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              Alaina Getzenberg is a staff writer who covers the Buffalo Bills and the NFL. She joined ESPN in 2021. Alaina was previously a beat reporter for the Charlotte Observer and has also worked for CBS Sports and the Dallas Morning News. She is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley. You can follow her via Twitter @agetzenberg.

          ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- The Buffalo Bills defense could soon be getting a boost.

          Cornerback Tre'Davious White, who missed the first five games of the season while on the reserve/PUP list as he recovers from a torn left ACL, begins his 21-day practice window Wednesday. He remains on the list, and the team has until Nov. 2 to remove him from it. If he isn't activated by then, he will miss the rest of the season.

          Coach Sean McDermott said White will not play against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS).

          After the game against the Chiefs, the Bills have a bye week, and then will host the Green Bay Packers in Week 8.

          “Tre’s worked extremely hard to get himself back to where he is now. And I want to respect that in terms of how that's going to look going forward,” McDermott said. “We're just going to take it, not only one practice at a time, but bear with me when I say this, one play at a time and practice and just go from there. So, I think it's just let's crawl before we walk and that'll be the approach.”

          In White’s absence, 2020 seventh-round pick Dane Jackson has started when healthy, and rookies Kaiir Elam and Christian Benford have rotated at the other outside corner position. Benford continues to recover from surgery on his broken right hand.

          The Bills have dealt with a variety of injuries on defense already this year with safety Micah Hyde (neck) out for the year. Hyde recently underwent surgery on a herniated disc in his neck, per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, and faces a six-to-nine month recovery period.

          “I love Tre, I love having him out there,” wide receiver Stefon Diggs said. “It’s just an extra boost of energy to see your guys out there, especially a guy that fought back from injury. Just don’t want to rush him. When you feel right, you feel right.”

          The Bills defense has played well despite the injuries and are tied for first in points per game allowed (12.2). The unit has given up the fourth-fewest passing yards per game (182.6).

          When the 2020 All-Pro was the nearest defender last season, he allowed a 50.8% completion percentage and 58.9 passer rating, both fourth-best among defensive backs with 50-plus targets this season, per NFL Next Gen Stats, at the time of his injury. The Bills had the best passing defense in the league last year, allowing just 12 passing touchdowns and a 56% completion percentage.

          White seemed to be progressing well during training camp but stopped rehabbing outside during practices in late July.

          "You're meshing how we rehab people to what they want to see," general manager Brandon Beane said prior to the start of the season. "And so, getting that, you have to all kind of collaboratively work together in what's in Tre's best interest before we put him out there. So, we're going to make sure we're all in agreement that he's ready to start practicing. And we're not just going to say, 'Hey, on a Wednesday, Thursday, Tre, get out there and play him on Sunday.'

          "... These other guys getting ready for the season, have practiced a lot, and calloused themselves up. We need to do that to be fair to him, too."