What a game! The Buffalo Bills flew to Miami on a hot, muggy night and thoroughly dominated the Miami Dolphins 31-10. This moves the Bills to 2-0 on the season and in early control of the AFC East. Both teams came in with several injuries but they played as though they did not miss a beat.
Unfortunately, the Buffalo Bills just continued to suffer injuries to their defensive players that could have a lasting impact on the season. The term “next man up” works until there are no more men to step up.
Below are all the injuries coming out of Thursday’s game and analysis.
In-Game Injuries
LB Terrel Bernard (Left Pectoral)
Bernard exited the game with 4:18 left in the first quarter on a false start by G Liam Eichenberg. However, it appeared as though the injury was suffered several plays earlier as seen below. He was able to play another three plays before he was forced to come off as he was tackling with only his right arm. He began walking off and into the blue medical tent before coming out and holding his left shoulder.
He was initially questionable to return and maintained that status until after the second-half kickoff when the team downgraded him to out.
Following the game, the team indicated that they did not know the severity of the injury yet. They won’t know until he gets an MRI which will indicate whether he is day-to-day or week-to-week. There are a wide variety of potential timelines based on severity which means a timeline cannot be established quite yet.
Considering that he played on one arm for several players, I thought it might have been a strain, but Bernard knew something was wrong quickly.
Update: Bernard was seen in the locker room with no sling and in pretty good spirits. This further supports more of a strain vs full tear.
An update came today that he suffered a strain and should be out a month.
Here is an article I did on Matt Milano when he suffered a pectoral strain in 2020 and played through the injury that can help explain several things about the pectoral strain.
DE Casey Toohill (Knee)
Toohill was initially questionable to return to the game sometime late in the first quarter. Below is the best example of the knee injury when he gets tied up and falls. He exited briefly before returning for his defensive rotation and then rotated out when he was listed as questionable.
He was able to return early in the second quarter with about 12 minutes left in the second quarter and did not appear to have any restrictions from reports and game film.
Other Notes
TE Dalton Kincaid (Head)
Kincaid left for about 10 minutes after taking a knee to the head following an 8-yard run with 11:17 left in the first quarter. I didn’t even notice him out until reporters were tweeting that he was back in. This was the play below that led to his brief exit. What likely happened was that the independent athletic trainers called down for a check and he cleared. Why the team didn’t announce this, I’m not sure, but he continued to play once he returned.
QB Josh Allen (Left Hand)
Allen clearly dominated throughout the night and did not need to rely on his legs, having only two rushes for two yards.
After the game, he was observed having tape on his left middle and ring fingers as he signed the helmet. He was also seen getting interviewed and during a screen capture, you can see the bruising at the base of the ring finger.
Final Thoughts
The Buffalo Bills showed up and showed out on what should have been a closer game on a short week. The injuries always hurt, especially with the unknown timeline for Bernard, but even if he did fully tear, there is a chance for a late-season return.
Bernard is no stranger to injuries as he battled through a variety of them in college and several in the NFL. Whatever the severity, he knows the work he has to put in to return to the field. The Bills get a mini-bye following this game as they prepare for a Monday Night matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 3.
Make sure to check back for injury updates and timelines.
Top Photo Credit: Getty Images
