Will Justin Shorter and Khalil Shakir end up on the Injured Reserve list tomorrow?

The Buffalo Bills have some decisions to make in their wide receiver room, and those decisions hang on the short-term fate of Justin Shorter and Khalil Shakir.

It’s looking as if the Bills may place Shorter, a fifth-round pick in this year’s NFL Draft, on in-season Injured Reserve (IR). Shorter is dealing with a new hamstring injury, and, as we know from last season, hobbled wide receivers don’t fit well in the high-powered, pass-heavy Bills’ offense.

Moving Shorter to IR would free up a roster spot for, say, Andy Isabella who was released on cut day but, due to being a fifth-year veteran, doesn’t have to clear waivers before being re-signed.

Shakir is another injury story. The second-year receiver suffered a rib injury in the Bills’ second preseason game on August 19. The injury, while not clear — or specific — having been listed as “sore ribs” initially, has kept Shakir sidelined since it occurred.

While nothing specific has been said about the 23-year-old Shakir finding a spot on the IR list, the speculations have been there for a few days.

Both Shorter and Shakir have made the Bills’ initial 53-man roster, which means that Buffalo wants to keep the pair around a little longer. But they also need room for guys who can play Week 1. The Bills released five wide receivers to get to that all-important number 53. Do they want some of them back?

They also need to bring back long snapper Reid Ferguson — which means they intend to move at least one someone to IR. Shorter and Shakir will not both — if even either — be active on September 11 when the Bills open their 2023 season in New Jersey against the New York Jets.