The 3-0 Buffalo Bills take on the 0-3 New Orleans Saints in a Week 4 matchup. Both teams come into this matchup with vastly different expectations. For the Bills, this is another opponent on their schedule as they look towards the playoffs, but one they should not overlook either.
For the Saints, this is an opportunity to show that last week’s 44-13 drubbing by the Seattle Seahawks was a fluke and that they can contend with some of the NFL’s best. While the Saints look to keep this game competitive, the line at -16.5 suggests otherwise.
Injuries for both teams may keep this game closer than the line says. Read below for a full injury analysis for both teams and projected inactives.
BUFFALO BILLS INJURY REPORT
OUT
LB Matt Milano (Right Pectoral)
Milano was unable to practice all week as he continues to recover from a right pectoral strain suffered in Week 2 against the New York Jets.
According to Sean McDermott, he is improving but no other details have been provided as to when he is expected to return. Originally when the injury came down, I had suspected that he would miss two to three games so to see him not practicing at all isn’t all that concerning.
When he last suffered his pectoral strain in 2020, the first week after the injury, he did not practice all week. His second week saw him with a limited, full, limited practice before being ruled out. Considering Week 3 was a short week and Week 4 was not practicing all week, I hope that he can be limited next week with a chance to play.
That is how Terrel Bernard also progressed after his pectoral stain last year, limited practices all week and questionable designation and play. Every injury is different, but we should see Milano return to practice next week.
DT Ed Oliver (Left Ankle)
Oliver will miss his third consecutive game after suffering a left ankle injury after being stepped on in practice the Wednesday after Week 1.
He was seen at practice walking around without a boot, the second time we have seen him without a boot in as many weeks. He was seen last week walking around the field prior to Week 3 without the boot. He is still limping in the video and I’m not even certain he plays in Week 5 based on how this presentation has gone.
Once he returns to practice hopefully next week, we may better establish a timeline but this has been a confusing injury up until this point.
QUESTIONABLE
OT Spencer Brown (Left Calf)
Brown was a new addition to the injury report with a calf injury suffered during the first drive according to him during his appearance on One Bills Live on Wednesday.
Looking at the video, it appears that he suffered the injury with 4:35 left in the first quarter. It appears he gets kicked in the calf but finishes the drive. During the second drive, he was limping after several plays but did not miss any snaps.
He was unable to practice on Wednesday or Thursday but got a limited practice in on Friday, not moving fluidly in warmups. The left side is further confirmed with the picture above showing no sleeve on the right leg whereas I assume the left leg has a sleeve due to past management of soft tissue injuries.
Furthermore, Brown had a very similar practice presentation prior to missing the game versus the Kansas City Chiefs last year, DNP, DNP, LP, Questionable, downgraded to out.
If this was the playoffs or a must win game, he plays. But it’s Week 4 against a non-conference opponent that you are favored by at least two scores, he sits.
DE AJ Epenesa (Left Pectoral)
Epenesa appeared to suffer a left pectoral injury during practice on Wednesday after he was limited. He was later seen on practice pictures with a brace on the left arm as he engaged a blocking pad.
On Friday, Matt Parrino of Syracuse.con spoke with Epenesa and noted that he suffered a pectoralis minor strain. This is a deeper muscle that connects the coracoid process of the scapula and upper ribs together. This helps draw it anteriorly and inferiorly against the thoracic wall and helps with elevating the ribs during breathing.
This type of injury occurs when the arm is suddenly abducted or externally rotated. A direct blow to the front of the shoulder could have also contributed to this. Despite wearing a brace on the area, it may still be difficult for him to play.
If he lines up over the left tackle and tries to bend the edge, the offensive tackle could push his left arm out back to block and stress the muscle further though horizontal abduction or external rotation, think of a baseball pitcher cocking his arm back. This would force him to rush inside more and limit his pass rush moves.
Lining up over the right tackle, he can work outside but loses any leverage inside especially if the tackle hooks under the left arm and forces it up. Could he play? Sure, but you risk him leaving early due to injury or not being effective. This would be a great opportunity for Landon Jackson to get some reps. The only downside is that Jackson doesn’t play special teams unless he has been introduced to the unit over the last few weeks.
This would be the one player that if he is active could play through his injury.
INJURED RESERVE
CB Maxwell Hairston (Right Knee LCL Sprain)
Despite being on injured reserve, Hairston returned to the practice field to work through various drills for the first time Wednesday. This was also the first extended action we have seen from the rookie since suffering his injury back on July 30.
Sean McDermott wanted to temper expectations for Hairston since he missed so much mental and physical reps and even insinuated that Hairston may not play this year which would’ve a stark change from previous reports.
Watching Hairston work through drills Wednesday did not inspire confidence as his right knee lacked explosion, fluidness, hitches in the movement, especially going backwards. He was also wearing a hinged knee brace which is typical for an injury like this but my issue was that he did not look as well as I had expected him to for nearly two months after the injury.
On Thursday, he did more including cutting, sprinting, backpedaling, and other football activities as noted below. This looked better but not of someone that will be ready to step on a football field soon.
While this is promising that he was able to get out there and begin to practice, he still has a ways before he steps back on the football field to contribute on the 53 man roster. He needs to ditch the brace in order to return confidently to the field. He also needs to clean up his footwork, cutting, and backpedaling better to better than what it is right now.
His current presentation isn’t a reflection on Hairston’s rehab, the training staff’s work, or even the doctor’s management of the injury. This is more of an indictment on the severity of the injury, highly likely more than what we were told as an isolated LCL sprain. Whether there is damage to the PCL, biceps femoris tendon, lateral capsule of the knee, or even lateral meniscus is up for debate.
It is the Bills’ prerogative that they don’t tell us the full information, but seeing how he looked this week confirmed that there is likely more damage to the knee. It’s possible there was a setback which explains this week’s presentation, but there are no confirmations of that.
I hope they can open his practice window after Week 4, but it would not surprise me to hear that they are delaying opening his practice window to the field to ensure his health. A Week 8 return isn’t impossible, but what we saw this week wasn’t as promising as I had hoped.
Finally, I had originally thought that he would avoid IR given the injury, research timelines, and knowledge of the injury itself. He instead was placed on injured reserve and thought to give him more time to rehab, but this was all done due to the severity of the injury, not necessarily being conservative. When you don’t have all the information, you can’t make an as informed decision as you would like.
K Tyler Bass (Left Hip/Groin)
This is an open ended timeline for Bass as there is no clear cut point to when he returns. This continues to be a possibility of osteitis pubis which can linger.
For more information, I broke down the injury along with treatment possibilities back in Week 2.
Finally, this is purely speculative, but this article from The Athletic linked here discussed how kickers are looking for different kicks to make it more difficult for kick returners from catching the ball. Think of a pitcher with a variety of pitches requiring different grips and arm angles during release.
The article goes deeper into discussing the type of kicks a kicker can do to change the trajectory of the ball. They also discuss how this can increase the risk for injury due to the different kicking motions. We may not know the exact details until Bass tells us, but there may be a possible reason to his pelvic woes.
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS INJURY REPORT
OUT
OL Dillon Radunz (Toe)
Radunz missed last week’s game and did not travel with the team as he dealt with a toe injury. The exact details of his injury are not clear, he was unable to practice all week and ruled out.
DE Chase Young (Calf)
Young has missed the first three games of the season as he works though a calf injury suffered in practice prior to Week 1. Initial reports were that it was not a long term injury and him not being placed on injured reserve supports that.
He wasn’t able to practice all week and will miss his fourth consecutive game.
QUESTIONABLE
WR Devaughn Vele (Hip)
Vele suffered a hip injury in practice last Thursday and was limited the following day before missing Week 3.
He was limited again this week and is officially questionable. Considering the injury was so recent, the team may elect to sit him again. He sees work on special teams and offense, but no more than a third of the snaps.
ACTIVE
WR Trey Palmer (Hamstring)
Palmer missed Week 3 after being listed as a limited participant on Wednesday before being downgraded to DNP the following two days. He has been a healthy inactive the prior two games.
He was a limited participant on Wednesday.
OL Trevor Penning (Right Toe)
Penning has missed three games after suffering a right toe injury on August 10 during the first preseason game. He was spotted wearing a boot on his right foot during the preseason.
Despite missing the first three games and wearing a boot, he was able to return to practice in full on Wednesday and has no designation for Week 4.
DE Cameron Jordan (Groin)
Jordan was a new addition to the injury report Wednesday as he dealt with a groin injury. He played in a season low 59 percent of snaps. He was able to practice in full all week.
However, he has played through notable injuries including a torn adductor muscle in 2020 so even if this is a more serious injury, Jordan is going to show up and play.
OT Taliese Fuaga (Left Knee/Back)
Fuaga has been left knee patellar tendon irritation also known as jumper’s knee since appearing on the injury report prior to Week 2. Jumper’s knee is where there is irritation at the tendon where it connects to the bottom of the kneecap. This is caused by overuse and is the first stage in patellar tendinitis. This has been bothering him since mid-August according to reports.
Keep in mind, his left knee is the inside leg playing right tackle which allows him to play through this more. He also missed last week due to a back injury suffered in Week 2. He was limited in practice on Wednesday from more likely the back issue.
Fortunately for the Saints, he was able to get a limited practice in on Wednesday before practicing in full on Thursday and Friday.
Buffalo Bills Projected Inactives
DT Ed Oliver
LB Matt Milano
OT Spencer Brown
DE AJ Epenesa
WR Curtis Samuel
OL Chase Lundt
CB Ja’Marcus Ingram
Call Ups: DT Phidarian Mathis, LB Jimmy Ciarlo
New Orleans Saints Projected Inactives
DE Chase Young
OL Dillon Radunz
WR Devaughn Vele
RB Devin Neal
DT Khristian Boyd
Final Thoughts
This is not a common opponent which makes discussing storylines more difficult as a potential rematch would be in the Super Bowl, a highly unlikely scenario. The Bills should make every effort to rest everyone that is dealing with injury or limit snaps to key contributors once the game is in hand should the Bills take care of business.
The game should not be much of a contest as the Saints look to rebuild and the Bills look to stay healthy. Hopefully this can be a good opportunity for the Bills to get reps for several young guys and see who they need to cut in the coming weeks with injured reserve and suspension decisions looming.
Top Photo Credit: Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images
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