ESPN

‘Douglas had been among the most vocal Packers players when it came to expressing frustration over their struggles on the way to the 2-5 start.’

‘The Tampa Bay Buccaneers released Fournette before the start of the 2023 league year. The veteran told the Tampa Bay Times that it was at his request and there was “no bad blood” between the franchise and him.’

‘The offense will try to find that elusive consistency and keep the positive trends from Thursday night going after the mini-bye when Buffalo faces the Cincinnati Bengals (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC) on Nov. 5. With the decisive, up-tempo offense Thursday, Allen was able to guide the unit up and down the field with plays that featured minimal substitutions and gave players with the ball a chance to shine — from Allen with his legs to the team’s wide receivers.’

‘Knox, who had surgery on his wrist on Tuesday, will miss at least four games with the injury after coach Sean McDermott said earlier this week that the Bills did not have a clear timeline yet for his return. The tight end initially injured his right wrist in the team’s Week 5 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.’

‘”Took a little, little fall on it and felt a little funky about it, but you know, just trying to keep it warm and keep it loose,” Allen said after the game. “I’ll be sore for a couple of days, but we’ll be fine.”‘

‘While this was a step in the right direction for the Bills’ trend of slow starts, this remains a unit with work to do with some of the issues flipping to the second half. Three straight punts allowed the Buccaneers opportunities to get within striking range and the downfield passing game remains something to work on. But against Tampa Bay, with tougher opponents still to come, it was enough.’

‘”Sean does not waver from his beliefs, from the way that this program has been built and we all understand that it starts with him …” assistant head coach/defensive line coach Eric Washington said. “You’ve gotta understand what is going to happen over the course of a season and how the great teams respond to it.”‘

‘”Maybe I’ve got to be more upbeat and be a voice and be a little bit more loud — let my emotions show a little bit more,” Allen said. “Whether I do that Thursday or not I guess will come with the execution of it, because obviously everybody is having more fun when you’re winning football games and performing well. That’s first and foremost. We’ve got to go out there and execute. I think execution breeds energy.”‘

‘Knox, 26, has caught 15 passes for 102 yards and one touchdown this season. His role as a receiver has decreased with the addition of first-round pick Dalton Kincaid, although the team is fourth in the league in 12 personnel usage (31.2%), with part of the goal in drafting Kincaid being to get both players on the field at the same time. Last season the Bills ran 12 personnel on 11.9% of plays, the fifth-lowest rate.’

‘”We’re going to get [opponents’] best shots, whatever it is,” defensive tackle Jordan Phillips said. “We’re a team everybody wants to beat and we got to stop playing down to certain different people. We got to do our thing and play Buffalo Bills football. We haven’t done that the last couple weeks, even though we won last week.”‘

‘”In the past, it’s been, probably, more inconsistent. You see flashes, then it goes away,” coach Sean McDermott said. “I think to AJ’s credit and the entire D-line, as well as [defensive line] coach [Eric] Washington and [assistant defensive line] coach [Marcus] West, they’ve really grown closer together … to this point, AJ has done, you know, I don’t want to say a 180, but his approach, his consistency, has been a big part of our success up front this year.”‘

‘Tight end Quintin Morris (ankle) and running back Damien Harris (concussion and neck) are also out for Sunday’s game in Foxborough, with the Bills placing Harris on injured reserve later Friday. The team signed running back Ty Johnson from the practice squad to the active roster in a corresponding move. Harris, who was taken off the field in an ambulance in the second quarter of the Bills’ 14-9 win over the New York Giants last week, will not face the team he played for over the previous four seasons. Johnson joins second-year back James Cook and veteran Latavius Murray as the team’s only available running backs.’

‘”I would put it in the pain management [category],” Allen said, when asked whether it will be more about managing pain with the injury or being preventive in dealing with it moving forward. “But, you know, it’s feeling pretty good.”‘

‘McDermott said that Harris is doing as “well as can be expected” and has a neck sprain and is in the league’s concussion protocol.’

‘Harris was rushing the football on third-and-1 from the Buffalo 34-yard-line in the second quarter when he took a hit to the neck area into the back of Bills right guard O’Cyrus Torrence and Giants linebacker Bobby Okereke.’