The third week of the preseason has been a rough one when it comes to injuries in the NFL. The Buffalo Bills were luckier than some other teams when it comes to losing key contributors, but there were a few injuries that came out of Saturday’s 13-9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens that need to be addressed.
Most notably, two of the Bills’ three quarterbacks are in the concussion protocol. Tyrod Taylor was knocked out after a sack on the Bills’ second drive, while third-stringer T.J. Yates was concussed at some point during his stint in the fourth quarter (he did finish the game). As it stands, rookie Nathan Peterman is the only healthy quarterback on the roster.
Sean McDermott also shed some light on a few new injuries during his press conference. Wide receiver Andre Holmes (neck spasms), safety Bacarri Rambo (hip), and linebacker Max Valles (knee) are all sitting out of practice until further notice. Adolphus Washington was injured during the game last night, but did return. He’s also going to miss practice, but he (along with Kyle Williams) were excused for personal reasons.
Finally, McDermott announced that Marcell Dareus will miss practice due to a hip injury. Dareus was notably held out of the Ravens game for a rules violation and traveled home separately from the team. Now he’ll be missing practice as well, albeit for a medical reason.
With all of the injuries, it’s likely that the Bills are going to peruse the free agent market for some camp bodies for the preseason finale against the Detroit Lions. At the very least, they’ll need a quarterback to back up Peterman. They’ll likely need to add at least one defensive tackle as well, although the rest of the positions should have enough depth available.
It’s hard to say how much the injuries affect the depth chart. Taylor will hold on to his starting job unless he remains injured into the regular season, while Dareus isn’t going anywhere regardless of what happens. Holmes will likely remain on the roster, although his spot on the depth chart was already precarious and could fall after a strong showing from Zay Jones. Rambo and Washington were likely to make the roster as reserves, and still are. Valles was a long shot to make the roster and still is. There is a question as to whether Yates should be dumped in favor of extra depth at another position, so that’s something that might remain up in the air depending on Peterman’s performance against the Lions.
We’ll be keeping an eye out for any roster moves these injuries might trigger.