The Buffalo Bills return home to open their new home against the Detroit Lions on Thursday in Week 2. They are coming off an exciting 36-31 win over the Houston Texans and to start off 2-0 during a tough start to the season would be ideal. Playing on a short week is never ideal but at least the Bills are at home and with the excitement of the new stadium, this might power them to a win.
Fortunately, the Bills are coming in fairly healthy while the Lions are improving but will be missing several key starters from last year. These short week games are always tough but knowing they have a mini-bye on the other side of Thursday will help the team address any issues.
Below are the full injury reports for each team and projected inactives.
The Buffalo Bills vs Houston Texans Week 1 Injury Preview is brought to you this season by Richmond Vona, LLC.
“When the unexpected happens, expect Richmond Vona.”
BUFFALO BILLS INJURY REPORT
QUESTIONABLE
S Cole Bishop (Left Knee/Groin)
Bishop left Sunday’s game late in the second quarter when he disappeared into a pile of bodies and came out with an injured left knee. The team medical staff checked out his knee and had him tested on the sidelines before returning to play at the beginning of the third quarter.
Unfortunately, Bishop was also on the injury report for a groin injury and was a limited participant on the only day of media availability
The knee I am not too concerned about; the bigger issue is that he missed 10 days of the preseason with an undisclosed lower body injury. He didn’t have any sleeves on either leg during the time he was out, but when he did return on August 20, he was wearing a sleeve on the right leg.
Whether this was a groin at the time or this is a new injury, that part isn’t clear. Considering the short week, the team is being cautious, but being without Bishop would be a big loss in the secondary. I’m leaning towards him playing knowing they have a few days on the other side.
The only variable that could change things for Bishop is if the rain is real slick tomorrow due to the rain and they’re worrying about footing. Dry, good turf, I think he goes. Wet, poor footing turf, they keep him out.
RB Ty Johnson (Right Hamstring)
Johnson continues to ramp up in practice after being a surprise participant during Friday’s practice last week. This comes after not seeing him for the majority of the preseason since suffering his right hamstring on August 8.
He looked great on Friday, and I thought after the long layoff with rehab that he would have been ready to go, but the team elected to hold him out. While the coaching staff has changed, the medical team has largely stayed the same, which means there should be some consistency in how they manage these injuries.
Based on historical data, anytime a player has been questionable and missed during the regular week, which then followed a short week, that player had played in six of the seven instances. The only player to sit out in both weeks was QB Cardale Jones in 2016 with a right shoulder injury.
DT TJ Sanders (Right Knee/Illness)
Sanders missed last week after suffering a right knee injury in practice, where it was reported that he “tweaked it,” according to Joe Brady. The team smartly held him out to allow the knee to heal and hope that he could be ready for the short week.
He was limited on Monday during an estimated practice before being downgraded due to an illness, and he was sent home.
While he was able to get a limited practice in on Wednesday, I still have concerns about his readiness for Thursday and how he feels. Officially, there have been 68 instances of illness since 2016 for the Buffalo Bills; only 2 have not played since then. Even if they’re questionable which only 10 have been, 80 percent of them play. The short week may affect that, but after not playing last week, but only getting one practice in this week, I thought he could go but he may be best to sit one more game.
ACTIVE
LB Terrel Bernard (Left Calf)
Bernard was limited all week after suffering a left calf injury after losing his footing late in the third quarter on Sunday. He came up grabbing his toes before he ran off and then returned the next series. It’s possible that this was a cramp at the time and now he is dealing with the soreness of the short week and making sure it doesn’t cause more problems.
The team has to be really proactive in how they manage Bernard so as not to let injuries linger, but he appears to be ready to go. Considering he doesn’t have a designation, they feel good about him.
LB Bradley Chubb (Thumb)
Chubb showed up on the injury report due to a thumb injury sustained sometime during the win over the Texans. It’s not clear which side or when this occurred, but he was a full participant in practice all week, and I expect the injured thumb to be taped up to protect the area.
DB Jordan Hancock (Right Quad)
After being questionable last week due to a quadriceps injury picked up the week prior in practice, Hancock saw 23 snaps on special teams but has yet to see a defensive snap. Despite practicing in full, the team still needed to make sure he got through the full week. There is always a concern about suffering a re-injury to the area, but with the mini-bye on the other side of this game, he can get the extra rest necessary to be removed from the report.
DETROIT LIONS INJURY REPORT
Note: much of this content is derived from Dr. Jimmy Liao, a physician who covers the Detroit Lions from an injury perspective.
OUT
OL Christian Mahogany (Left Hip)
Mahogany was unable to practice all week following a left hip injury suffered in the first quarter of Sunday’s game. He was unable to return and fellow injury analyst Dr. Jimmy Liao who covers the Detroit Lions, has a great video of the injury below.
I agree with Jimmy that this looked more like a knee, but the team deemed it a hip. Head coach Dan Campbell didn’t think it was a serious injury, but he didn’t expect him to go this week.
OT Blake Miller (Right Knee)
Miller missed Monday and Tuesday’s practice dealing with a right knee injury, as seen below.
I agree with Dr. Liao’s assessment in that this could have easily been an ankle or knee but the knee took more of the brunt of the force. This looked to be an MCL sprain and while it can be braced up to play, he could easily reinjure it if he had another player roll onto him or he may become liable in blocking if he can’t anchor through that leg.
There were plenty of media reports and mentions that Miller was hoping to play and the tweet below suggests that he was trying to go. The Lions have historically rarely played a player that did not practice Monday or Tuesday on a short week, but after they ruled him out on Wednesday, that put a stop to those hopes.
QUESTIONABLE
CB DJ Reed (Foot)
Reed was a surprise addition to the injury report this week after not appearing on Monday’s estimated report. He showed up with a foot designation and was officially limited. According to the Spartera Injury Database, Detroit Lions players who have limited practices on Tuesday and Wednesday have a 63.3 percent chance of suiting up on a short week.
ACTIVE
OL Juice Scruggs (Knee)
Scruggs, formerly of the Houston Texans before he was traded this offseason, has a knee injury that kept him limited all week. According to Dr. Liao, Scruggs didn’t appear to have an injury during the game and played in 100 percent of snaps.
DB Christian Izien (Groin)
Izien missed last week as he worked through a groin injury dating back to August 25. He was expected to return in late September, which would have put him out for a month, but the fact that he could return much sooner helps out an already weakened secondary. He missed last week but will be ready this week.
Buffalo Bills Projected Inactives
OT Jude Bowry
DE Mike Danna
S Jalon Kilgore
DT TJ Sanders
WR Skyler Bell
Detroit Lions Projected Inactives
OL Christian Mahogany
OT Blake Miller
DB DJ Reed
DT Mekhi Wingo
EDGE Ahmed Hassanein
Final Thoughts
The Bills appear to have the early advantage coming into this game with a healthier roster, the home-field advantage, and missing no one long term. The Lions, on the other hand, will be without their two starting safeties on PUP: Brian Branch, who suffered a right Achilles tear in early December, and Kirby Joseph, who has been battling a degenerative left knee. Additionally, they are down C Cade Mays, who is working through a wrist fracture and is on IR.
They will also be without RB Isaiah Pacheco, who is recovering from back surgery and will be out for several months.
While the line is favored for Buffalo at -4.5, this will be a difficult place for the Lions to start fast in a supercharged environment and keep up with several starters missing. The Bills also have to make sure this doesn’t turn into a trap game where they never get going and let the Lions control the action. This should be an exciting game in the NFL’s newest stadium and celebrate a new chapter in Buffalo Bills football.
Top Photo Credit: Jordan Bank/Getty
Discover more from Banged Up Bills
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
