The Buffalo Bills for the second straight week held a walkthrough practice, which is something they will probably try to keep throughout the rest of the season to manage workloads of players. However, the good news is that they had a key player on offense back on Wednesday.
Emmanuel Sanders has been dealing with a knee injury from the Bucs game two weeks ago and missed this past week’s game against the Carolina Panthers. However, he was able to practice on Wednesday in a limited capacity.
While this doesn’t necessarily guarantee he is returning this week, it is a great step in the right direction. The Bills could certainly use Sanders back this week with the team expected to be without Cole Beasley, who was placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list on Tuesday.
If Sanders is able to return, he will likely see more playing time in the slot and could be split the work with Isaiah McKenzie.
Jerry Hughes, Micah Hyde limited during Buffalo Bills practice on Wednesday
The other two players who were limited on Wednesday were defensive end Jerry Hughes, who is dealing with a neck injury, and safety Micah Hyde, who has a back injury. In a pivotal game like this, the Bills could use both players on the field against the Patriots so their participation the rest of the week is worth watching.
Josh Allen: “Good to go”
For the second straight week, quarterback Josh Allen is on the injury report with a foot injury however he did practice in full during the walkthrough on Wednesday. After practice, Josh Allen met with the media and was asked if there were any lingering issues with his foot, and as Thad Brown tweeted he gave a short response:
It will be interesting to see if this changes the game plan at all for the Bills’ offense against the Patriots. In Week 14 against the Bucs, Allen ran the ball 12 times but last week only had three carries.
If there are no lingering effects of the injury, do the Bills once again lean on their franchise quarterback to jump-start the run game? The good news is that whatever direction they take, Josh Allen will be on the field with no concerns about his foot in this important matchup.