The Bills massed together seven sacks on Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick last week. Of those, one came from defensive end Corey Liuget.
The recently signed defender is more known as a run defender. But as a defensive lineman, the sack is always the golden ticket.
That quarterback tackle was the 25th time in his career he’s brought down an opposing signal-caller, but Liuget still called it a special one because of what it took to get there.
“For me, it was a very emotional one because of the ups and downs and injuries I’ve suffered, most guys don’t come back from,” Liuget told the team’s radio show.
What the 29-year-old is referring to was a ruptured quad injury which ended his career with the Chargers last November. As he explained on the Bills’ radio show this week was his rehab included three months of not moving his leg and six weeks in an entire leg cast.
After he was released by the Chargers, Liuget wasn’t brought back by the team he spent his entire career with.
Eventually he did land with the Raiders, but never got into a groove and eventually was released after appearing in three games, making him available for the Bills. Even with the advances in medicine over the years, plenty of players don’t return from the injury he suffered.
Liuget said beating the injury that tried to ruin his career and earning the ultimate team goal is what motivated him to find a new home.
“I wasn’t going to let this injury defeat me. To get that sack, it was very, very, very important for me and it felt great,” Liuget said. “The love for the game and the fact that I want to win a Super Bowl [is why he returned].”
In his first two games with the Bills, Liuget has been part of Sean McDermott’s trademark rotation on the defensive line. He’s played in 25 percent and 28 percent of defensive snaps the past two weeks, respectively.
So far, McDermott approves of the work he’s done and the coach believes he’s settling into his new home well.
“Yeah, he did a good job,” McDermott said. “This past week in particular, I think the more he’s around our system, the more comfortable he gets and the faster he plays. That was good to see last week. He really does some good things that the other guys in the room could stand to learn from as well. That veteran experience from a fundamental and technique standpoint is real for us.”
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