Adding competition to the running back room, the Buffalo Bills signed UDFA RB Isaiah Bowser from UCF following a rookie minicamp tryout this past weekend.
The bruising back originally from Northwestern before transferring to UCF comes to the Bills with a nose for the end zone, scoring 32 total touchdowns, 16 in his senior year alone.
Despite the production, Bowser was not drafted and brought with him several injury issues dating back to his time at Northwestern.
Below are Isaiah Bowser’s publicly reported injury history and concerns.
Injury History
2019 Northwestern
Knee/ankle injury, side not specified, Week 1, missed 5 games at the end of the season.
Bowser suffered an injury in Week 1 against Stanford l, leaving in the third quarter, unable to return. Several reports noted a knee injury whereas others noted an ankle injury, missing the final five games of the season.
Following the season, Bowser underwent surgery with the specifics unknown. It’s likely related to the injuries from the prior season. The article linked above doesn’t explicitly state that he did have surgery, but further details can be found here.
2021 Central Florida
Knee injury, side not specified vs Louisville, missed 2 games.
Bowser injured his knee in the third quarter against Louisville, forcing him out of the next two contests against Navy and East Carolina.
Ankle injury, side not specified vs Tulane, missed 3 games.
Once Bowser returned, he was able to play in several more games before going down with an ankle injury against Tulane. He regrettably missed the final three games of the season.
Buffalo Bills Injury Outlook
Isaiah Bowser plays a very demanding position with a short shelf life. To see him work through lower body injuries is no surprise.
There aren’t many details on the injuries other than the body parts affected and the time missed. It would not shock me to find out he had several MCL sprains along with a high-ankle sprain that cost him the three games.
His undisclosed surgery is also worth noting, but considering he played through injuries back in 2019. He possibly required some sort of clean-out to the ankle or knee.
Bowser is in a crowded running back room at the bottom looking upwards. He’s in the room which means he has a shot. A strong camp could lead to either the Bills’ practice squad or the opportunity to get scooped up by another team in the event of injury.
While the underdog story is always embraced in Buffalo, his presence on the active roster may suggest a lot of injuries ahead of him. In order for him to have a shot, he needs to stay healthy to showcase his talents.
Top Photo Credit: Sports Illustrated
