Getty Buffalo Bills cornerback Dane Jackson celebrates a play with linebacker AJ Klein.
With the game status of rookie wide receiver Gabriel Davis up in the air, the Buffalo Bills announced Saturday that they were elevating wide receiver Kenny Stills from their practice squad for their AFC Championship matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.
Stills signed with the Bills before their AFC Wild Card playoff matchup against the Indianapolis Colts but has yet to see the field. Until Cole Beasley and Davis suffered injuries, the Bills had been relatively healthy in their wide receiver room. Now, Stills might get his first opportunity to see the field for the Bills.
.@BuffaloBills roster moves:
Elevated CB Dane Jackson and WR Kenny Stills from the practice squad.
Signed K Tristan Vizcaino to the practice squad and released DB Duke Thomas from the practice squad.
The Bills also elevated rookie cornerback Dane Jackson from the practice squad for the second straight week as the Bills prepare to try and stop the best passing offense in the league.
As a rookie this season, Jackson has been big for the Bills. He was elevated from the practice squad last week as well, but was listed as inactive for the game. Before that, the former Pitt defensive back played in five games for the Bills and came up big in coverage.
He only tallied 15 total tackles, but he picked off a pass against the New York Jets and he also deflected five passes and recovered a fumble. His gameplay against the Cardinals might’ve been his biggest performance of the year as he matched up with DeAndre Hopkins on multiple occasions and recorded eight tackles with one pass deflection.
Although the Bills have plenty of depth in the secondary with Tre’Davious White, Levi Wallace, Josh Norman and Taron Johnson, Jackson could play a crucial role on Sunday if he’s listed as active. He’s proven to be able to show up in big moments and with the number of weapons that Kansas City has, the Bills could need all hands on deck.
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Kenny Stills Could Be Big For The Bills This Weekend
Heading into Sunday’s matchup, Stills could be crucial if he takes the field.
Davis has been a receiver that quarterback Josh Allen has been able to rely on and if he’s not able to go on Sunday, Stills could step into that role after being able to learn the offense over the past few weeks.
Even though Stills was signed to Buffalo’s practice squad recently, he’s no slouch. In his eight-year NFL career, Stills has played for the New Orleans Saints, Miami Dolphins, and Houston Texans. He’s caught 310 passes for 4,843 yards and 37 touchdowns over the course of his NFL career and he’s also averaged 41.4 yards per game.
Before signing with Buffalo, Stills spent the first 10 games of the season with the Texans and caught 11 passes for 144 yards and one touchdown. One of his best seasons came in 2016 when he caught 42 passes for 726 yards and nine touchdowns for the Miami Dolphins.
Bills Sign Tristan Vizcaino to Practice Squad
The Bills signed the former San Francisco 49ers kicker to their practice squad on Saturday and it could be for precautionary reasons.
Bills rookie kicker Tyler Bass has been on the injury report all week with a hand injury but he’s practiced in full each day this week so the signing could be a precautionary one as the Bills head into the AFC Championship game.
Vizcaino has only been in the NFL for one year and has only played in one game. He converted all three of his field goal attempts for the 49ers earlier this season when they played the Seattle Seahawks. He also made both of his extra-point attempts.
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