The Buffalo Bills are ready to kick off their preseason schedule by hosting the Chicago Bears on Saturday afternoon. The Bills have announced that they will play their starters for one quarter.
While it’s good to see where the starting units are progress-wise, the idea is to get in and out without any issues. The Bills have plenty of smaller nagging issues from the last three weeks of training camp and need to get some guys back to practice fully.
Below are all the latest injuries coming out of Bills training camp and their impact on Saturday and beyond.
Injury Updates
Offense
WR Mack Hollins (Leg Soreness)
Hollins sat out practice on August 8 with leg soreness as training camp closed. He did suffer a minor injury during last Friday’s scrimmage, but it’s not clear if the soreness is related to that.
WR KJ Hamler (Undisclosed)
Hamler was being evaluated by training staff and it was up in the air if he would practice or not on Thursday. I can’t find any reports whether he did or not but he appears to be dealing with something that could potentially keep him out of Saturday’s game. We will know more on Saturday, but something to note.
WR Chase Claypool (Left Toe)
Claypool has been out of practice since suffering a left toe injury back on July 28 which came after a right foot/ankle injury on the first day of camp. Based on the timeline we’ve seen him miss, it’s highly possible he was dealing with some turf toe as the way he was injured was not well described. He was able to return to the sidelines on August 4 to begin some light rehab work.
He has been slowly ramping up his activity levels and it’s possible he could return to practice following the first preseason game. This injury could linger despite wearing a stiff sole in his shoe and continued rehab through the season. Hopefully, he heals well enough to get back out and play soon to earn a roster spot.
RB Ty Johnson (Right Hamstring)
Johnson has been slowly working back following his right hamstring strain suffered on a hit from Terrel Bernard on July 29. He has been off to the side rehabbing but there hasn’t been much the public has seen. The fact that the team hasn’t placed him on injured reserve shows their faith in his ability to return, but the injury isn’t doing him any favors.
OL La’el Collins (Knee)
Collins exited practice on August 1 with a knee injury and was unable to practice on Friday or Sunday. The exact details of the injury are unknown or if it’s even related to the knee injury from the 2022 season. Collins still has the knowledge to contribute, but whether his body can keep up is a whole nother story.
OT Travis Clayton (Right Shoulder)
Clayton has been out of practice since July 30 with a shoulder injury but had been wearing a shoulder brace before that, suggesting the injury occurred as early as July 26. He has been observed on the bike but that’s about it since then.
The hope is that he could suit up at some point and get some preseason game reps if the injury doesn’t linger too long. If he doesn’t, he does receive an exemption to stay on the practice squad as part of the international pathway program.
TE Dawson Knox (Vet Rest/Groin)
Knox missed practice on August 4 with a groin designation/vet rest. He noted that if it were a game, he would have played, but the team didn’t want things to worsen which is why they kept him out as a precaution. He was able to return the following day and has practiced without limitations since then.
WR Justin Shorter (Knee)
Shorter briefly exited practice on August 2 with a left leg issue before returning to finish out the scrimmage. He got through practice on August 4 without incident but was forced to miss the last three practices of training camp as he tended to what is officially described as a knee injury.
It looks like Shorter is still dealing with the left leg as evidenced by the sleeve notes in the picture, but not confirmed. Hopefully, Shorter can return to practice early next week to play in the second preseason game.
WR Andy Isabella (Left Leg)
Isabella got knocked down during a training camp fight on August 5, appearing to get his left leg hit. He required the cart to get off the field but that was out of caution and the locker room is a decent walk from the field.
Fortunately, the injury appeared to be minor as he returned after an off day with a sleeve on his leg, catching punts. This may be a contusion and nothing more.
OT Dion Dawkins (Personal)
Dawkins had to leave practice early on Wednesday to tend to a personal matter but was right back at his starting position the following day.
Defense
DT DaQuan Jones (Groin)
Jones’ absence is a curious one since he received a veteran rest day on August 5 before missing practice on August 6 and 8 with a groin designation. It’s not clear when he suffered the injury whether it was during Friday’s scrimmage or Sunday’s practice, but considering he is an older player, the team should be taking the cautious approach in bringing him back.
DE Casey Toohill (Groin)
Toohill missed practice on August 8 with a groin designation after appearing to suffer the injury during Wednesday’s practice. Not much is known regarding how it happened, but Toohill has little room for error if he wants to make the team. Losing practice reps won’t help.
S Mike Edwards (Right Hamstring)
Edwards continues to miss valuable practice reps after suffering a right hamstring strain back on July 28. He has not been observed rehabbing off to the side, indicating it may be some time before he returns to the practice field. I would hope he returns to the sideline early next week but setbacks or severity could alter that timeline. I do not recall seeing any reports that he has been working off to the side.
The hope is that he knows the defense and is making sure he fully rehabs to reduce his injury risk for the season, taking the Terrel Bernard approach.
S Cole Bishop (Left Shoulder)
Bishop has missed practice since suffering a left shoulder injury on July 30. While these are valuable reps that have been lost, this does allow Bishop to step back and take a break physically to allow everything that he is learning to sink in. It was not expected that he would play in the preseason opener and hopefully can play next week.
It’s been positive that Bishop has at least been spotted on the exercise bikes but has not been doing any shoulder rehab. I would not expect him to return to any sort of meaningful practice even conditioning until after the second preseason game and even then that may be premature. The Bills need to bring him along slowly, especially with all the information he has to learn about the defense.
However, unconfirmed reports surfaced Thursday that Bishop suffered a scapular fracture. To read more about the injury, click below.
LB Nick Morrow (Groin/Core Muscle)
Morrow exited practice on August 2 with a core muscle/groin injury, missing the following practice. Interestingly, they described Morrow as both a core muscle and groin injury, both injuries present similarly but both have different outcomes. A groin injury will improve while a core muscle injury is a tear somewhere in the abdominal wall that attaches to the pelvis. The symptoms tend to linger with the athlete generally not improving.
Players can play through the injury but usually saps them of any burst or explosion. What the team is likely doing is seeing if rehab can get him moving better to get through the season or if he has to have a consultation to get it repaired. If he does require repair, he could return this season but would spend some time on injured reserve. If surgery does happen, then he would likely go see Dr. William Meyers of the Vincera Institute in Philadelphia.
LB Edefuan Ulofoshio (Ribs)
Ulofoshio left the August 2 scrimmage due to a rib injury, missing the following week of practice. He has still been making every effort to be part of drills and getting the mental reps in which is cool to see.
We don’t know how he collided during the play, the way he was holding his wrist could suggest that he was bracing his arm to his side to stabilize the area. Another thought I had was that he suffered a first rib injury if the hit came over the top of the shoulder. This would cause pain shooting down the arm and potentially the sensation of a stinger, though in a different location. There isn’t much rehab that you can do for that area.
I recall watching something about an NFL player with a similar injury, potentially Receiver on Netflix, but I can’t find the exact player or instance to confirm. Either way, whether there is bruising, a fracture, or cartilage damage, the team will slow play his return.
Injured Reserve
DL David Ugwoegbu (Hip)
Not much is known regarding Ugwoegbu’s hip injury suffered at the Return of the Blue and Red on August 2. He was seen walking off with trainers towards the end of practice before they waived/injured him on Sunday. Depending on the severity of the injury, he hypothetically could return this season if the Bills wanted to use one of their injured reserve designations at the end of the preseason, but it’s highly unlikely they do that.
The immediate thought is that he tore his labrum in his hip, requiring surgery, but that is not confirmed. This at least allows the Bills to get him healthy and allow him to be in an NFL building to learn.
Analysis
Of everyone listed above, I do not expect any to play except for Dawkins, Collins, Isabella, and Knox. While this game will not make or break a guy’s training camp, performing well and avoiding injury will only benefit them.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of smaller, nagging injuries keeping players out. But this is far better than the major season-ending ones seen around the league. Looking back at past preseason camps, the Bills are close to average with the amount of injuries by this point by my count. The issue with that is that the injuries did not slow down after that with key contributors missing extended time.
While the score of the game does not matter, the hope is that no one is injured and every player can maximize their opportunity to make the Bills roster.
Top Photo Credit: Sports Illustrated
