Buffalo Rumblings
The Buffalo Bills take on the Philadelphia Eagles in just under two days’ time — a Week 17 game many have predicted as the matchup for Super Bowl LX. The Eagles have locked up the NFC East, while the Bills still have a sliver of hope in claiming the AFC East a sixth-consecutive time.
With that in mind, one might expect each team will manage their game-day rosters in Week 17 based on playoff scenarios. What does that mean for One Bills Drive? Let’s take a closer look, after learning which players have been ruled out, and those who remain questionable for Sunday’s game at Highmark Stadium.
Head coach Sean McDermott informed reporters on Friday, December 26 that safety Jordan Poyer (hamstring), kicker Matt Prater (quadriceps), plus defensive tackles Jordan Phillips (ankle) and DaQuan Jones (calf) have all been ruled out for Week 17 against the Eagles. Poyer picked up his injury late in action against the Cleveland Browns in Week 16, while Prater has been sidelined since the start of Week 16 — and ceded responsibilities to free-agent kicker Michael Badgley in the short term.
It remains to be seen how quickly Poyer can return to action from the hamstring injury, but anyone looking to count out the football warrior need only recall the lengths he took to get to and play a road game against the Kansas City Chiefs. It’s possible that Poyer is given rest to end the regular season, which hopefully allows him to return to the field playing his pivotal role alongside safety Cole Bishop in 2025.
Bills Mafia continues watching reports for positive news about Prater, but the elder statesman still needs some time to recover from a quadriceps injury to his kicking leg. After incumbent kicker Tyler Bass was lost for the entire 2025 campaign due to season-ending left hip/groin injuries that necessitated surgery, Prater stepped in and immediately solidified the position. Prater could return in time for the playoffs, depending on the severity of his quad injury.
Both Phillips and Jones have been managing injuries for a number of weeks, with Jones’ injury first occurring during pregame warmups in Week 9. As shared by Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic, McDermott explained that Jones has since “suffered ‘a little bit’ of a setback on the calf injury,” adding that “it’s around the same it’s been or a little worse and they’re figuring it out.” It’s likely that One Bills Drive wants to proceed cautiously with the pair of defensive tackles, given the playoffs are just around the corner.
While the Bills likely have enough capable reinforcements to offset the above losses, at least in a fair amount of respects, it’s at tight end where things continue to confound. Ahead of Sunday’s game, both Dalton Kincaid (knee) and Dawson Knox (knee) are listed as questionable versus the Eagles.
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