McMillan suffered a torn Achilles in May and is out for all of 2023. Still, his injury didn’t stop the Patriots from locking him in for next season, as the team will now have him rostered heading into next season. McMillan has been dealt a few tough blows as far as injuries go. His latest injury comes just less than two years after he tore his ACL in August 2021. McMillan totaled 35 tackles and one sack for the Patriots in 2022 but played primarily as a backup, logging just one start in 16 games.

For what it's worth, it is "partially" torn. Either way, it's a brutal blow for a player who missed all of 2021 with a torn ACL. He rallied to become an every-game contributor for the Pats in 2022. From the Pats' perspective, it's mostly a depth issue, but depth issues quickly become major issues, especially when it begins getting skimmed this early in the season.  

The new deal keeps McMillan from reaching the free agent market. McMillan returned from a 2021 torn ACL to play a sub-package role for the Patriots, posting 35 tackles and a sack while playing 23% of defensive snaps. The Patriots extending McMillan points towards a larger role for the run-stopper in 2023.

McMillan was signed to a one-year deal during the offseason after a year in Vegas following two in Miami. A former second-round pick of the Dolphins, this is McMillan's second torn ACL in his young career, though this one is on the opposite knee. McMillan will be a 26-year-old free agent next offseason and coming off another major knee surgery.