Buffalo Bills Pregame Injury Report: Week 5

Good morning, Week 5!

Stretching your mind, thighs, and souls, here is your Buffalo Bills pregame injury primer.

QUESTIONABLE

CB Tre White: What happened here? Tre played 100% of snaps in week four. nobody mentions anything about him all week, but Tre is a DNP the whole week and listed with a ‘back’ injury. Could Tre have woken up stiff and never shook it off?  Is it a bone issue, disc issue, nerve issue, just a ‘spasm’?  The fact nobody addressed this, there might be more that lies beneath the covers. Is Tre making a stance for how the NFL is handling COVID? 

Hot take alert! I would not blame him. The Titan’s COVID situation should irk opponents around the entire NFL. Buffalo Bills Injury-wise, if it’s really the back, and he could not even make it out of the locker room all week, I’m thinking his back is really locked up and he’s not making it back this week, and the Chiefs’ game should be assumed to be in jeopardy.  However, the team is still listing him as Questionable, which makes me wonder.  Tre is OUT if this is an injury, but I think he’s active if it’s a statement, and I hope to hear about it after the game!

Prediction: ACTIVE

RB Zack Moss: Listed as a ‘toe’.  This has to be a turf toe injury.  He was OUT week three, ‘limited’ all last week and missed week four, and now we see him limited all week again but full practice on Saturday’s walkthrough.  Players will usually miss one to two games for injury, as it is assumed it is a mild to moderate sprain on his great toe.  Zack Moss does have a previous toe injury in college, so he may need one more week.  If he does play, I’d expect a limited role. This injury will hurt him a lot to push off and pivot.  These can get tricky and can cause recurrent symptoms throughout the season.  

Prediction: ACTIVE

WR John Brown: We saw him on the injury report with ‘foot’ two weeks ago, then he left week three early and was limited in practice the following week with ‘calf’.  John Brown then played week four, and then he entered this week with a DNP and limited for a ‘calf’ again.  Then a video shows him pulling up in practice, which would leave one to believe this is a textbook re-strain of a calf muscle. Surprise, he’s ‘limited’ on Saturday for a knee?  What the heck is going on with John Brown’s leg?! Did he strain the muscle behind his knee now? It’s odd, but as I’ve said before: something is going on with Brown’s lower leg, and it looks like it is going to drag out for a while.  I think he re-injured his calf, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s out two more weeks.  Enter Gabriel Davis fantasy sleeper pickup week five!

Prediction: OUT

G Cody Ford: Coach McDermott said he’s ‘playing through some things’.  Well, Cody had surgery in the offseason on his right shoulder, see this picture from Valentine’s Day 2020.  

Now Cody Ford is wearing a brace on his left shoulder in games and listed on the injury report with a ‘groin’.  He was DNP/limited all week.  However, Cody played 100% of snaps in the past two weeks.  Brian Winters is also banged up, and I think with Cody dealing with a few things for sure, and that’s why they sounded the alarm and started warming up Feliciano in practice.  My guess is they wait the whole 21 days on Feliciano. Oh, and I think Cody Ford suits up.

Prediction: ACTIVE

LB Del’Shawn Phillips: Thigh injuries are my kind of injuries, and Phillips has been out since week one.  Like all muscle strains, this is listed as a ‘quad’ and a 2-6 week timeline is the norm. He was limited last week but full this past week for three straight practices. Looks like he’s ready to roll.  The great question is can he take some snaps away from Klein or Dobson?  

Prediction: ACTIVE

WR Andre Roberts: He is listed with an ‘ankle’ injury.  Andre was DNP all week and limited on Saturday.  Last rep I can remember Andre taking was his 38-yard punt return.  He looked good to me getting up. Maybe it was a sprain that he felt after the game or some ankle tendonitis. Andre was DNP all week until limited in Saturday’s walkthrough. Based on my belief, this was a minor injury. I see Andre Roberts suiting up. If he doesn’t, could we see Duke’s debut ala vs Titans in 2019?

Prediction: ACTIVE

G Brian Winters: Brian left week four after taking a fall onto his right knee on the same play Josh Allen injured his shoulder. Winters never returned.  Brian was limited on Wednesday, DNP for two days, and then limited on Saturday. Winters’ injury appears to be mild if he was on it early after the practice on Wednesday.  Maybe he had a drainage similar to Ed Oliver last week.  I think it’s either patellar bursitis or at worst a mild PCL sprain based on the mechanism of injury in this picture shown below.

Prediction: ACTIVE

Added to IR

CB Levi Wallace: Levi had a rough ankle sprain early in the first half of week four. He will be out at least three weeks.  Seen on crutches after the game, it was tough to get a close look at what happened to his ankle.  This still shot shows a traditional low ankle sprain. However, when watching the tape, his ankle rolls back and forth. The mechanism is rolling of the ankle outward, also known as a high ankle sprain, and this carries a 4-6 week recovery.  A low ankle sprain would usually carry 1-3, so I think we are dealing with a high ankle injury. Ironically, Levi plays with his opposite ankle already ‘spatted up’, from a pre-existing ankle sprain.  Look for him to come back for the Patriots or Seahawks game.

OUT

LB Matt Milano: OUT with a pec injury, Milano has now seen a rash of soft tissue injuries in his career.  See here for thoughts on this injury. 

REPORTED

QB Josh Allen:  Leaving the field, but never missing a snap, Josh has a left shoulder sprain. It appears that this will not limit his current MVP caliber play.  However, be wary of Josh taking hits in the run game and how he is tackled to the ground. See our report on Josh Allen’s injury for details on this injury. 

WR Cole Beasley: Cole was listed as ‘limited’ on Wednesday, but FULL the rest of the week.  It was said his injury occurred on his circus TD catch.  He will be ready to go, as it should be assumed a mild foot sprain.  

Activated from IR

G Jon Feliciano: Jon had a pectoral surgery right as camp started.  Although, in my opinion, it is odd to show up to camp with a torn pectoral muscle, Jon was probably doing his best to train hard for the season, and it was an unfortunate consequence.  At this time, he is 10 weeks post-surgery.  He has two more weeks to be activated to the roster. J.J. Watt and Kwon Alexander came back in limited roles for the playoffs last year at 9/10 weeks post-op.  If Jon plays, the OL doesn’t rotate in and out like the defense will, so I see him taking the full acclimation period. He may even find himself in a support role for his first month back if the team wants to play it conservatively.