A little more than six months after they suffered a heartbreaking, three-point defeat to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC championship game, the Buffalo Bills returned to the gridiron on Saturday to open their three-game, preseason schedule, taking on the New York Giants at Highmark Stadium.
But even as the Bills head into 2025 as one of the favorites â or even in some predictions, the sole favorite â to win the Super Bowl, they already face a difficult situation that could easily derail their season.
Startling Spike in Bills Training Camp Injuries
Injuries happen to every NFL team, of course, but the Bills have faced an injury outbreak that exceeds normal expectations in training camp. In fact, as the preseason opens, Bills injuries are up 56 percent compared to the same point last season, according to Dr. Kyle Trimble, a physical therapist who chronicles and analyzes Bills injuries on his website, Banged Up Bills.
“Last year at this time, they had 23 players that had some type of injury, missed time, or trainer attention,” wrote Trimble in a Friday report on his site. “This year through two weeks, we are at 36 different players that are dealing with injury that required missed time or trainer. That is a 56 percent increase from last year at this time.”
Silver Lining: No Season-Ending Injuries â Yet
While a 56 percent jump in injuries is not a situation that can be easily sugar-coated, Trimble noted that the blow is softened somewhat because none of the 36 injured players appear to have suffered anything that could threaten their seasons.
“Many of these injuries are on the minimal side and are cautious sitting out so the injuries do not linger,” Trimble wrote. “The Bills have avoided any of the major season-ending injuries that have plagued other teams around the NFL so far this camp.”
Forced to Use Running Back To Sub For Injured Kicker
Some of the Bills injuries are worrisome, however â including the “pelvic area soreness” suffered by kicker Tyler Bass. The five-year veteran drafted in the sixth round by the Bills in 2020 connected on 24 of 29 field goal attempts last season, though he excelled from distance.
Bass hit on all four of his tries from 50 or more yards, with a season â and career â long kick of 61 yards, a game-winner against the Miami Dolphins in Week 9, with just five seconds left on the clock.
On Friday the Bills announced that they had signed former Ole Miss kicker Caden Davis, who set that school’s single-season scoring record last season with 129 points. Davis had originally been signed as an undrafted free agent by the New York Jets, who cut him last week.
But to kick an extra point on the Bills’ first touchdown Saturday, coach Sean McDermott sent out running back Ray Davis, who had worked out as an emergency kicker in practice. Davis managed to convert the point.
First-Round Draft Pick Skirts Serious Knee Tear
The Bills’ 2025 first-round draft pick, former Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston, also presents the Bills with a concerning situation. The 6-foot-1, 186-pounder missed five games with a shoulder injury in his final college season, and on July 29 he tripped and fell during a training camp practice, sustaining a sprained knee ligament.
Tests showed initial fears that Hairston had torn his ACL in the knee, an injury that could keep him out for the season, were unfounded.
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