The Buffalo Bills hoped to get top defensive tackle Ed Oliver back for the playoff run, but those plans may have just gotten more complicated.
Bills head coach Sean McDermott announced on Wednesday that Oliver was hit with a setback in his recovery from a bicep injury that landed him on injured reserve. While there is still hope that Oliver returns for the playoffs, he will now have more complications to deal with along the way.
Ed Oliver Hit With Another Injury
As Matt Parrino of Syracuse.com reported, Oliver was hit with a separate injury while rehabbing his torn bicep. That prompted him to have a surgical procedure that could have him out longer than anticipated.
“Ed Oliver had a knee meniscus clean-up procedure after an injury popped up during rehab back from the bicep injury, per Sean McDermott,” Parrino shared in a post on X. “He’s now working through both injuries hoping to make it back at some point in the playoffs.”
It’s not clear whether Oliver’s return will be pushed later into the playoffs, but any extra missed time will be a significant setback. Oliver was playing at an All-Pro pace when he went down, registering 3.0 sacks and 12 total tackles in just three games. He also forced a key fumble on Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry, sparking the team’s 15-point comeback late in the fourth quarter to win the season opener.
Bills Rule Out Starting Linebacker
The Bills are dealing with a number of other injuries as they head to their season finale against the New York Jets. McDermott announced that linebacker Terrel Bernard, who was knocked out of last week’s loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, would not play in the season finale.
The Bills did get some good news on the injury front after quarterback Josh Allen’s X-rays came back negative on an injured foot. Allen had been ailing for two weeks with the foot ailment, but is expected to play in the season finale.
NFL Network insider Ian Rapaport said that Allen has been playing hurt for the last two weeks, but will still be able to take the field.
âTwo weeks in a row of getting X-rays on his foot, two weeks in a row of limping after the game,â Rapaport began. âThat is a thing at least certainly worth us talking about.â
Rapoport added that the Bills could choose to sit Allen and the other starters, but he will be ready if needed.
âNow, who plays what, how many starters actually play in the game, thatâs a different question than âis he ready to go,’â Rapaport said. âMy understanding is that he is going to be ready to go.â
The Bills were eliminated from division contention with last week’s loss and will go into the season finale jostling for playoff seeding. They will likely finish in either the No. 6 or No. 7 spot, which would put them on track for a likely trip to face either the New England Patriots or Jacksonville Jaguars in the wild-card round.
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