WGR

‘Matt Milano, Tremaine Edmunds, Del’Shawn Phillips, and Tyrel Dodson are all banged up and either didn’t practice, or did, but with red non-contact jerseys.’

‘“I didn’t think he was actually going to do it like this,” said Eric Jenson, the neighbor who ignited Mansfield’s fire by having the audacity to fly a Jets flag in Western New York, of all places. “But it looks good and we’ll have to find something else to do now.”’

‘”I’ve been around those conversations before, albeit in a different position, but very close to the topic nonetheless,” he said when asked about being on teams with those QBs. “It never goes away. Just from my experience, you’re always trying to find that sweet spot. What’s not enough? What’s too much? It takes everyone. It takes us as coaches and Josh, to find that right balance.”‘

‘Edmunds left the game in the third quarter with a shoulder injury, while Milano exited just before halftime with a hamstring injury. Neither returned to the field of play, although Edmunds was on the sidelines later without his helmet or shoulder pads.’

‘As opposed to 2019 when the Bills had some slow starts, the offense put up a pair of touchdowns in the first quarter and had 21 points on the board by halftime. That was more than they averaged per-game last season (19). The Bills could have hit the 40-point mark were it not for Allen’s two fumbles, which both happened in scoring territory, and a pair of missed field goals from rookie kicker Tyler Bass.’

‘It would be tough to ask for a better start to the first game of 2020. At least as far as the scoreboard and stat sheet go, anyways.’

‘The Jets offense began to come alive in the fourth quarter and made things somewhat interesting in the final minute with a two-yard touchdown run from Josh Adams to make it 27-17, but the Bills easily held on to best their AFC East rival and start the new campaign 1-0.’

‘After putting up 21 first half points – that frankly should have been 35 – the Bills were only able to muster six second half points leading to a lot of second-half nail biting.’

‘Unfortunately, Milano suffered a hamstring injury and left the game right before halftime. But in one half of play, he was all over the defensive side of the field, collecting 4 total tackles with a pass breakup and a terrific, athletic interception.’

‘All of this means the Bills now have an open roster spot. They’ll go into the game with 54 players on the active roster. They can have either 47 of them active for the game, or 48 active if they choose to activate an eighth offensive lineman.’

‘There was very little on-field offseason time this year due to the Covid pandemic. There were no preseason games. So the teams with the most turnover on their roster and/or coaching staffs will have to play catch-up a little bit, while the teams who have more returning players and coaches should have a competitive advantage. The Bills have that advantage, and need to use it. Buffalo returns 37 players from last season’s opening day active or practice squad roster. The Jets return a lot of defensive players, but only two wide receivers and two offensive linemen. So the Bills need to take advantage of a group of wideouts and an offensive line that will largely be playing together in any sort of NFL game for the first time by using different coverages, stunts up front, and other new wrinkles the Jets may not have prepared for.’

‘Defensive tackle Vernon Butler, also with a hamstring injury, is listed as questionable for the game.’

‘”We’ve had, even before Stef [Stefon] arrived, good players on our offense, so I don’t want to slight those guys in any way. Stef adds another dimension to our offense. I can tell you from a defensive standpoint, it’s hard enough to take away one receiver, let alone multiple weapons, if you will. That’s where we have to continue to play good team offense and use all of our weapons. It all starts up front. We’ve got to play well up front, physical, aggressive and strong, and make sure we give our quarterback time to get the ball to the weapons.”‘

‘The Jets weren’t so fortunate Thursday. Two starters in the middle of their defense missed practice after being limited on Wednesday. Inside linebacker Avery Williamson was out with hamstring injury and safety Marcus Maye, who had been dealing with a calf issue was now also listed as having an ankle injury.’

‘The other injuries of note were running back/special teamer Taiwan Jones, who was limited due to a knee injury, and defensive tackle Vernon Butler, who was also limited with a hamstring injury.’