The Bills may be heading into Sunday’s game against the Raiders short-handed, and the two names causing the biggest concern are the ones Buffalo can least afford to lose.
On Buffalo’s first injury report of Week 6, 15 players were listed. Most of them were able to get on the practice field, but wide receiver DJ Moore and defensive tackle Ed Oliver were the only two who did not participate Wednesday. With two more days of work left before kickoff, those are the situations worth watching most closely.
Both players also sat out Buffalo’s Week 5 overtime win over the Los Angeles Rams. Moore is dealing with a shoulder injury, while Oliver is working through a knee issue. Even so, Buffalo found a way to get the win without them.
That doesn’t change how important they are when healthy. The Bills brought in Moore this offseason to serve as their No. 1 receiver, and he opened the year with 12 catches for 178 yards and a touchdown across the first four games. Oliver, meanwhile, has been a fixture in the middle of Buffalo’s defensive line for eight years and has logged nine tackles and a half sack in three appearances this season.
Las Vegas has its own list to manage, though the early signs were a little more encouraging on the Raiders side. The team listed 12 players on its first report of the week, but six were full participants and four were limited. Only two players missed practice entirely.
Those two were defensive tackle Tonka Hemingway and wide receiver Jalen Nailor, both in concussion protocol. Hemingway’s concussion came in Week 5, which means he would need to clear the protocol in a week to have a chance to play Sunday. Nailor suffered his concussion in Week 4, and head coach Klint Kubiak said the team expects to see him back on the practice field this week, giving him a shot to clear the protocol by Sunday.
As for the rest of the Raiders’ notable names, running back Ashton Jeanty was a full participant Wednesday, while tight end Brock Bowers was limited.
The final availability picture won’t come into focus until later in the week, but both teams are dealing with important questions as Las Vegas tries to snap a two-game skid against a Bills team that can still win even if a couple of stars are missing.
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