Archives for May 17, 2016

'Worse, is the team administration’s effort to present this as no big deal as if Bills fans are collective cretins?'

'The Bills cannot afford to have him miss games. Beyond Watkins at wide receiver, the Bills return starter Robert Woods, drafted Kolby Listenbee in the sixth round and have a host of other veterans cut by other teams vying for roster spots. A healthy Watkins is needed to make this offense go.'

'Immediately after the Bills picked Lawson, Whaley told reporters, "Medical staff cleared him, said he can play. Now, if something happens, it’s going to happen, but it’s nothing that we’re real worried about or we wouldn’t have taken him. We got complete faith in our medical staff and they signed off on him, so we’re excited to have him."'

'If the Bills followed the advice of fans in 1985, they wouldn't have had the chance to retire Bruce Smith's jersey.'

'“He had an occurrence of the condition last week, but that would not preclude him from participating in the offseason program. Shaq is scheduled for surgery tomorrow on his shoulder with a rehabilitation program to follow. A timetable for his return is still being established.”'

'This foot injury isn't putting his 2016 season in jeopardy, but the Bills were hoping he and quarterback Tyrod Taylor to use this offseason to continue to build chemistry. Any time Watkins spends away from the field is not ideal for Buffalo.'

'While Watkins is expected to be ready for the start of training camp and has only missed two games in his NFL career, he's dealt with his fair share of injuries. Here's the rundown.'

'Now the Bills may be without their first-round pick to start the season. The Bills rolled the dice on a player who received a medical red flag from a few teams, and the worst-case scenario is playing out.'

'The Bills say Lawson, the 19th pick in last month's NFL draft, tweaked the shoulder last week and would undergo a procedure on Tuesday.'

'Lawson was a dominant defensive end while at Clemson, but questions surrounding the health of his shoulder pushed his stock value down.'

'Lawson was making a swim move on a tackling dummy in a non-contact drill when he aggravated his shoulder injury, sources told Schefter.'

'FOX Sports' Mike Garafolo is reporting that Watkins' timetable for recovery is six-to-eight weeks.'

'“I want to take this opportunity to commend Shaq Lawson and his representatives for putting the team first by having this surgery on his shoulder done now," Bills general manager Doug Whaley said in the statement released by the team. "By doing so, he’s forsaking personal goals to be 100 percent healthy when we will need him most during the regular season. Fans constantly hear us say that we want players with tremendous character who keep team goals ahead of personal ones and Shaq is a great example of this.”'

'The initial report said that some teams believed Lawson would be sidelined anywhere from four-to-six months. If that timetable is the correct one, that would keep Lawson away from the field for the start of the regular season, with a return date somewhere between mid-September and mid-November.'

'It’s going to be challenging for both IK Enemkpali and Randell Johnson to make the roster this summer.'