Following their 27-24 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday in the AFC wild-card round of the playoffs, the Buffalo Bills had a bit of an injury scare.
“Josh Allen said he got rolled up a little bit in the first half the touchdown play he came up limping. Allen said ‘we’re good,’” The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia wrote on X. “Allen was sporting a little bit of a limp in the locker room, too.”
Fortunately for the Bills, Allen appears to be fine now.
Reports out of Bills camp on Monday were that Allen was sore after injuring his leg in Sunday’s victory but nothing that’s expected to keep him out of Saturday’s road clash against the top-seeded Denver Broncos.
Bills Could Get Major Defensive Boost
GettyBuffalo Bills DT Ed Oliver
Buffalo’s defense nearly cost the team in its playoff opener.
The Jaguars outgained the Bills 359 yards to 340, quarterback Trevor Lawrence threw for 3 touchdowns, and Jacksonville rushed for 154 yards as a team. The Bills also gave up a go-ahead touchdown with 4:03 left in the fourth quarter.
That’s, unfortunately, been the story for Buffalo all season. The team’s front seven struggles to shut down opposing rushing attacks, and the banged-up secondary struggles to contain top receivers.
The good news for the Bills and their fans is the team could get two key players back just in time for Saturday’s clash in Denver.
“DT Ed Oliver and WR Curtis Samuel to return to practice for the #Bills this week. Potentially huge. Meanwhile, QB Josh Allen is ‘sore,’” NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo wrote on X.
Oliver has been a huge missing piece in the middle of Buffalo’s defensive line.
The star defensive tackle played just three games during the regular season before suffering a season-ending torn pectoral.
In those three games, Oliver made his presence felt. He logged 12 tackles, 11 pressures, 6 hurries, 5 run stuffs, 3 sacks, 2 QB hits, and a forced fumble, according to Pro Football Focus.
Oliver also finished tied for the third-most tackles for loss (7) despite playing in less than 1/4 of the season. Getting him back would be a big boost against a Broncos team that averaged nearly 120 yards rushing per game during the regular season.
Samuel’s Return Could Come at Perfect Time
GettyBuffalo Bills WR Curtis Samuel
Though Samuel wasn’t a huge factor during the regular season — he had just 7 catches on 9 targets for 81 yards and a touchdown — his possible return comes at a time Buffalo desperately needs him.
Receiver Gabe Davis injured his knee in the second quarter against the Jaguars on Sunday, and he was ruled out for the rest of the playoffs with a torn ACL.
Buffalo is already without Joshua Palmer, who caught 22 passes on 37 targets for 303 yards during the regular season, and fellow wideout Tyrell Shavers (5 catches, 245, yards, 1 TD) is also banged up heading after the Jags game.
Samuel hasn’t put up big numbers in Buffalo, but he was a quite effective weapon during his time with both the Carolina Panthers and Washington Commanders.
The 29-year-old WR had 50 or more catches and 625 yards or more in 2019 and 2020 with Carolina, and he had back-to-back 60-catch, 600-yard seasons in 2022 and 2023 with Washington.
If he’s healthy, Samuel could give Josh Allen another option to take some of the pressure off Khalil Shakir and Brandin Cooks.
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