Earlier this week, Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott raved about Denver Broncos running backs Melvin Gordon III and Phillip Lindsay.
Now, the Bills may not have to deal with the two talented running backs during their matchup on Saturday as Broncos coach Vic Fangio said both backs were going to be ‘questionable’ for Saturday’s primetime matchup against the Bills during Thursday’s video conference call. Fangio also said that starting right guard Graham Glasgow and safety Trey Marshall are questionable as well.
McDermott called the pair of running backs, who have rushed for a combined 1,217 yards and seven touchdowns this season, one of the best tandems in the league. So, if they aren’t in the mix on Saturday, the Bills should have an easier day as Royce Freeman, who’s rushed for 129 yards this season, is Denver’s third-string running back.
“They are one of the best combinations in the league, they really are,” McDermott said during a video conference call on Wednesday. “They are fast. They break tackles. So, we’ll have our hands full come Saturday.”
Buffalo has had one of the best rushing defenses in the league over the past few weeks as they haven’t had allowed a team to rush for over 100 yards in three weeks. They’ve also only allowed one team to do so in their past five games. A lack of running backs for Denver will allow the Bills to force them to become one-dimensional, which the Bills have capitalized on this season.
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Buffalo Receives Good News On Injury Front
While the Broncos might have two running backs out for Saturday, the Bills seem to be in a good place injury-wise.
While John Brown will be ‘out’ as the Bills are giving him another week to recover from the knee/ankle injury he suffered against the Arizona Cardinals, they received some good news about linebacker Tremaine Edmunds and defensive back Taron Johnson.
Both have been limited in practice this week with foot and concussion designations respectively but were listed as full participants in practice on Thursday and are set to go for Saturday.
Thursday injury report
Johnson suffered a concussion in the second half of Buffalo’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers after picking off Ben Roethlisberger and returning it 51 yards for a touchdown just before the end of the first half this past Sunday. It was the first time that Buffalo had scored a defensive touchdown since 2017 when Jordan Poyer picked off Tom Brady.
Edmunds missed Buffalo’s Week 2 game against the Miami Dolphins and played through a shoulder injury for the first part of the season. He’s returned to his former self over the past few weeks and has been a key piece in the Bills’ defensive improvements.
Tight end Lee Smith, who suffered a knee injury against the Steelers was listed as questionable and safety Jaquan Johnson is listed as ‘out’ for the second straight game with an ankle injury.
The Bills Are Developing a Run Game of Their Own
As the season has gone on the Bills have been able to develop a running game of their own, although Josh Allen and the receiving corps have led the way this season.
In two of the past three games, the Bills have rushed for 100 or more yards and Devin Singletary and Zack Moss have started to become a mixture of thunder and lighting in the backfield for the Bills. The team rushed for 104 yards against the Pittsburgh Steelers this past weekend and they combined for 172 rushing yards and a touchdown against the Los Angeles Chargers as well.
Heading into the bye week, after their loss to the Arizona Cardinals, the Bills coaching staff put a focus on developing the running game after a rough start and it has seemed to pay off for the Bills as they enter the final stretch of the season.
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Vic Fangio Says Two Key Players are ‘Questionable’ For Bills Matchup