Bills vs. Chiefs: First look at Week 11 injury reports

Bills hope to get Cooper back; Chiefs hope to get Smith-Schuster; both will be without other offensive weapons

The Buffalo Bills are preparing to host the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday. It’s the most anticipated game of the week. The Chiefs are undefeated. The Bills were supposed to be contending for a wild card spot at best, according to “preseason experts.”

But here we are with the Bills as the two seed in the conference and having the AFC East locked up in all ways except on paper. They’ve done all of this with what many said was an inferior roster — and whether you believe that or not, no one can argue that the roster has been riddled with holes due to injury.

While this week it looks a little better than past weeks, there are still plenty of injuries to monitor.

Buffalo Bills’ initial Week 11 injury report

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New Buffalo Bills names on the Week 11 Injury List

• OT Spencer Brown (ankle)*
• LB Matt Milano (biceps)
• S Taylor Rapp (shoulder)*
• WR Curtis Samuel (foot)*

Despite how it looks at first glance, this section has more good than bad in it. The obvious good is that linebacker Matt Milano is now on the injury list — this doesn’t happen until a player’s 21-day practice window is opened as they work their way back from Injured Reserve (you can read more about that here). Milano won’t play this weekend — head coach Sean McDermott already said that — but having him on the injury list is a big step in the right direction.

The other three names have been on the injury list for at least a week (some longer), but with different injuries. This week they added more injuries to their names. However, only Brown didn’t get a full day of practice in. That’s right — Curtis Samuel was a full participant for the first time since Week 7. As far as Brown goes, the offensive tackle said that he’s optimistic he’ll be ready to play on Sunday.

Buffalo Bills players now off injury list in Week 11

• OT Spencer Brown (previous designation: wrist)*
• CB Taron Johnson (previous designation: forearm)
• TE Dawson Knox (previous designation: ankle)
• DB Cam Lewis (previous designation: shoulder)

The big news here is that Taron Johnson, who won the Week 10 AFC Defensive Player of the Week award after his pick-six, sack, and tackle for a loss, as the Bills beat the Indianapolis Colts, is not on the injury list. This is the first time in 10 weeks we don’t see Johnson’s name.

Brown is also listed here as it’s important to note that he’s no longer receiving medical attention for a wrist injury he had been dealing with in Weeks 9 and 10. Also now healed is tight end Dawson Knox who had been dealing with an ankle injury for the past two weeks.

Buffalo Bills players on the Week 11 injury list who will need monitoring

• WR Keon Coleman (wrist) — already ruled OUT for Sunday
• WR Amari Cooper (wrist)
• TE Dalton Kincaid (knee)

On Monday, McDermott announced that Coleman would not be playing against the Chiefs. That will give him two more weeks to heal as the Bills have a Week 12 bye.

The real watch will be to see if Amari Cooper can make it back on the field. In the same conference as McDermott told us Coleman wasn’t playing, he said that he wasn’t sure what it would take to get Cooper back in a uniform — but he also mentioned pain management would be a factor. On Wednesday, Cooper could be seen catching passes from a Jugs machine and using both hands pretty equally.

Kincaid injured his knee in the first half of last Sunday’s game. The second-year tight end tried to make his way back into the game but struggled to get the push and performance he needed and ultimately exited the game for good in the fourth quarter. The injury occurred as Kincaid tried to stretch out for an overthrown pass and landed on the front of his knee. There’s plenty of speculation about what could be wrong (and how much time he will miss), but per usual, McDermott isn’t talking. This is one to keep an eye on, but don’t expect to see much until after the bye.

Buffalo Bills players who are status quo on Week 11 injury list

• QB Josh Allen (left hand)
• CB Christian Benford (wrist)
• LB Terrel Bernard (ankle/pectoral)
• CB Kaiir Elam (shoulder)
• FB Reggie Gilliam (hip)
• WR Mack Hollins (shoulder)
• DT DaQuan Jones (foot)
• TE Quintin Morris (shoulder/hamstring)
• S Taylor Rapp (foot)*
• WR Curtis Samuel (pectoral)*
• DE Casey Toohill (knee)
• LB Dorian Williams (knee)

Everybody above was a full participant. The injuries listed here for Samuel and Rapp are old ailments that they’ve been playing through. Obviously, since they were full participants despite having new injuries, they are just in maintenance mode for these ailments.

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Kansas City Chiefs player injuries to monitor for Week 11

• DE Charles Omenihu (knee)
• RB Isaiah Pacheco (ankle)
• WR JuJu Smith Schuster (hamstring)
• WR DeAndre Hopkins (knee)

Omenihu and Pacheco are not on the Chiefs’ active roster, and it’s unlikely that they will play in Buffalo on Sunday according to Kansas City head coach Andy Reid. But unlikely doesn’t mean ruled out this early in the week, so their progress will be something to monitor throughout the week. Omenihu is trying to make his way back from a postseason ACL tear while Pacheco fractured his fibula in Week 2 of this season and has been on Injured Reserve ever since.

Smith-Schuster is the player to keep the most tabs on this week. The wide receiver has only played in five games this season, recording just nine catches for 147 yards and a single touchdown. Smith-Schuster hasn’t played since the first quarter of Week 7 when he injured his hamstring. Reid said that whether or not the eight-year veteran plays on Sunday will depend on how he progresses throughout this week, but that he is hopeful to have him available.

DeAndre Hopkins joined the Chiefs in part due to Smith-Schuster’s injury. Now he, too, is dealing with a leg ailment. Hopkins wasn’t on the Week 10 injury report but now has a knee injury for Kansas City’s medical team to manage. It’s likely that the injury is a flare up of the MCL tear he suffered in July while still a member of the Tennessee Titans, however this is the first time it has been reported by the Chiefs. Despite the injury, Hopkins was a full participant in Monday’s practice.

Kansas City Chiefs players who are status quo in Week 11

• DE Michael Danna (pectoral)
• WR Mecole Hardman (shoulder/toe)*
• RB Kareem Hunt (knee)
• DE George Karlaftis (abdomen/ankle)*
• QB Patrick Mahomes (ankle/hip)*
• OT Wanya Morris (knee)
• NT Derrick Nnadi (triceps)

The three names here with an asterisk (*) all have new injuries they are dealing with this week. Despite that, no one listed here missed any practice time on Monday.

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Thursday’s practice, and subsequent injury reports, will give us a better idea of those injuries we should dive deeper into to see how they might affect Sunday’s inactive lists.