In Thursday’s Buffalo Bills injury report, three potential starters did not practice, putting their game status in jeopardy for the week. The secondary looks thinner without Micah Hyde on hand, and tight end Charles Clay is in his second week of spotty practice sessions.
Clay, who was listed as limited on Wednesday with an ankle injury, did not practice on Thursday. That’s normally a bad sign, indicating a player’s condition may have worsened. The Bills used a similar tactic with Clay last week and he ended up playing, so this might be a case of managing his reps to allow him to make a gameday appearance.
The biggest concern is at safety, where Hyde is already expected to miss Sunday’s game with a groin injury. His replacement, Rafael Bush, missed practice on both Wednesday and Thursday with a shoulder injury. Not only would the Bills like to have a replacement for Hyde, but they’d also want to have Bush available for their “big nickel” package against a team in the Titans who likes to line up with multiple running backs on the field. If Bush can’t play, rookie Siran Neal is the next man up, and some combination of Phillip Gaines and Dontae Johnson will fill in the gaps.
Defensive end Shaq Lawson, who played Sunday as he continues to heal from his hamstring injury, was limited in practice again, but should be expected to play against the Titans.