The Buffalo Bills weren’t unscathed after their win over the Indianapolis Colts, and Zack Moss wasn’t the only player affected. On Wednesday’s practice report, the second of the week leading up to Saturday night’s game against the Baltimore Ravens, seven different Bills were listed with some form of injury—not including Moss, who was placed on injured reserve Tuesday.
With the Bills in full playoff mode now, we can’t rely on our typical sense of a player’s availability anymore. Take Cole Beasley, for instance, who didn’t practice on the first two days of the previous week, was a limited participant in the last practice, and ended up playing a full game. The old rules don’t apply here.
So keep that in mind with the Bills’ list. Some of these injuries are being managed with limited reps with full intentions to play the players on the weekend. Stefon Diggs (oblique) and Cole Beasley (knee) definitely fall into that category. Both players had the same injury last week, and both were full-go. Tyler Bass (hand) also popped up on the injury report Thursday, but was listed as a full participant, so don’t get worried yet.
Defensive end Darryl Johnson Jr. (knee) is clear-cut too, but for a different reason. He hasn’t been able to practice this week, and if he can’t practice on Thursday, don’t expect him to play. The Bills have Trent Murphy waiting in the wings, although he doesn’t have as much of an impact on special teams.
Where things are hazier are with three other Bills, each of whom has had two limited practices this week. Tremaine Edmunds (hamstring), Ed Oliver (ankle), and Justin Zimmer (groin) all have injuries that cover a wide range of severities—so it’s hard to know whether any of these players are at risk. Edmunds, with the hamstring, would be the worst-case scenario if he can’t suit up this weekend. The team will announce on Thursday whether these players will be available, but expect most of the list to just be “questionable” (and hope for a full practice to make the situation clearer).
The Ravens are healthier than the Bills, at least setting aside the players on injured reserve. While two players took veteran rest days on Wednesday, starting outside linebacker Matthew Judon (illness) and cornerback Marcus Peters (back) both missed their second practice in a row. Tackle D.J. Fluker has been limited in practice this week. That’s it for their list.