Bills Place John Brown On IR, Promote Jake Kumerow
Injury issues have interfered with John Brown building on his strong 2019 season. His second Bills slate has included missed games and will now feature at least three more absences.
The Bills are placing Brown on IR. An ankle malady forced Brown to come out of Week 10’s Bills-Cardinals game. Brown already dealt with a knee injury this season, one that forced him to miss two games. He is now guaranteed to be out until at least Week 15.
Buffalo will promote wide receiver Jake Kumerow from its practice squad. After news of his season-ending injury, Cody Ford will join Brown on IR. The Bills are also promoting linebacker Darron Lee from their practice squad. Lee landed in Buffalo earlier this season.
When on the field, Brown has been fairly productive this season. The former Cardinals and Ravens deep threat has four 70-plus-yard games this season. The Bills signed Brown to a three-year, $27MM deal, and the accord preceded the ex-Division II superstar’s second 1,000-yard season as a pro. Brown, 30, caught 72 passes for 1,060 yards and six TDs in 2019, helping foster Josh Allen‘s development.
While Brown has taken an expected backseat to Stefon Diggs this season, he still represents a key component of Buffalo’s passing game. His IR placement will require Cole Beasley and rookie Gabriel Davis to play bigger roles.
Bills’ Cody Ford Done For Year
Bills offensive lineman Cody Ford will miss the remainder of the season, according to head coach Sean McDermott (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). Ford’s torn meniscus will require surgery and 3-4 months of rehabilitation before he can get back on the field. 
Ford, a 2019 second round pick, served as the Bills’ first-string right tackle in his rookie season. This year, he started in all seven of his games on the interior, helping the Bills to an AFC East-leading 7-3 record. Thanks in part to Ford & Co., Josh Allen is playing better than ever. Through ten starts, the former No. 7 overall pick has completed 68.4% of his throws with 21 touchdowns against seven interceptions. The Bills couldn’t ask for much more out of their front five, especially after Jon Feliciano tore his pec to start the year.
The Bills may turn to Ike Boettger or Brian Winters for help up front as they continue their playoff push. They’re also likely to add a lineman to the roster between now and Sunday afternoon when they face the Chargers in Buffalo.
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/24/20
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:
Arizona Cardinals
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: S Deionte Thompson
Baltimore Ravens
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: OLB Pernell McPhee
Buffalo Bills
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Josh Norman
Chicago Bears
- Waived: DT Anthony Rush
Cleveland Browns
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DE Joe Jackson
Denver Broncos
- Activated from IR: RB LeVante Bellamy
- Waived: T Jake Rodgers
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed off Cardinals’ practice squad: LB Reggie Gilbert
- Promoted: RB Nathan Cottrell
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: K Chase McLaughlin
- Placed on IR: CB D.J. Hayden, S Daniel Thomas
Kansas City Chiefs
- Placed on IR: WR Byron Pringle
Los Angeles Rams
- Claimed off waivers from Patriots: DE Derek Rivers
New Orleans Saints
- Waived: LB Chase Hansen
New York Jets
- Promoted: RB Josh Adams
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: TE Vance McDonald
- Promoted: TE Kevin Rader
Tennessee Titans
- Placed on IR: T Ty Sambrailo
- Waived: P Trevor Daniel, CB Greg Mabin
The Jets’ addition of Adams makes a lot of sense after rookie running back La’Mical Perine suffered a high ankle sprain that is expected to sideline him for at least a couple games. A 2018 UDFA out of Notre Dame, Adams played a significant role with the Eagles as a rookie, when he started five of 14 games and carries the ball 120 times for 511 yards and three touchdowns. Despite the reasonably productive first season, he was waived at final cuts last year.
Bills’ Tommy Sweeney Done For The Year Due To COVID-19 Complications
We unfortunately have at least our second case of a player’s season being ended due to COVID-19 complications. Bills tight end Tommy Sweeney is the latest, Buffalo announced.
Sweeney has developed myocarditis, a heart condition which is not uncommon with COVID-19 infections. It’s an inflammation of the heart, and is one of the main concerns with athletes getting the virus. Jaguars running back Ryquell Armstead had to be hospitalized twice and was enduring major symptoms before he was ultimately ruled out for the season last month. Fortunately most diagnoses for NFL players have meant an absence of only a game or two, but there are still the possibility of complications even for elite athletes.
Sweeney was drafted by the Bills in the seventh-round last year. He appeared in six games as a rookie and made one start, catching eight passes for 114 yards. Hopefully the Boston College product and former first-team All-ACC selection is able to make a full recovery in time for 2021.
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/19/20
Here are the most recent NFL minor moves:
Buffalo Bills
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: TE Tyler Kroft, S Dean Marlowe, CB Levi Wallace
Chicago Bears
- Placed on IR: WR/PR Dwayne Harris
Cleveland Browns
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: T Jack Conklin, K Cody Parkey
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Placed on IR: CB C.J. Henderson
Kansas City Chiefs
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: T Eric Fisher, T Mitchell Schwartz
Minnesota Vikings
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: FB C.J. Ham
San Francisco 49ers
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: C Hroniss Grasu, LB Joe Walker
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted: CB Jayson Stanley
Tennessee Titans
- Promoted: P Trevor Daniel
Josh Norman Tests Positive For COVID-19
Nov. 15: Luckily for Norman, he is asymptomatic, as Ed Werder of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter). Norman understands that he cannot play today due to league protocols, but he says he feels well enough to do so. The team hopes to have him back shortly.
Nov. 14: The Bills have run into a COVID-19 issue ahead of their trip to Arizona. Josh Norman tested positive for the coronavirus, according to the team, and this will result in at least four Bills not traveling for their Week 10 game.
Norman, cornerback Levi Wallace, safety Dean Marlowe and tight end Tyler Kroft landed on Buffalo’s reserve/COVID-19 list. The latter three players — deemed as high-risk close contacts — must isolate for five days.
As of now, Sunday’s Bills-Cardinals game remains on as scheduled. The team is set to travel to Arizona later this afternoon. Defensive assistant Leonard Johnson will join the aforementioned quartet of players in not making the trip to the desert.
This is not the first time Saturday news of a Bills positive test emerged to weaken one of their position groups. Dawson Knox tested positive for COVID-19 late last month, and the Bills placed two other tight ends on their COVID list that day. The NFL did not adjust the game time of the Bills’ rematch with the Jets. The league has not changed a game time because of COVID-19 since Week 7. With virus numbers skyrocketing around the country, similar challenges to the one that prompted the NFL to move a Bills-Titans game to a Tuesday night appear on the horizon.
Norman signed a one-year, $6MM deal with the Bills — one of several ex-Panthers to rejoin Sean McDermott and Brandon Beane in Buffalo this offseason — but began the season on IR. He returned for three games but has missed the past three due to a hamstring injury. He had practiced all week and was expected to return against Arizona, however. The Bills also recalled Wallace from IR earlier this season.
They will face the Cardinals’ No. 1-ranked offense with a depleted secondary. The team will promote some reinforcements, however. The Bills elevated Daryl Worley, Darron Lee, cornerback Dane Jackson, wide receiver Jake Kumerow and safety Josh Thomas from their practice squad.
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/13/20
Here are Friday’s minor moves:
Buffalo Bills
- Placed on IR: LB Del’Shawn Phillips
Carolina Panthers
- Placed on IR: RB Reggie Bonnafon, DE Stephen Weatherly
Miami Dolphins
- Promoted: DT Benito Jones, TE Chris Myarick
New Orleans Saints
- Activated from IR: LB Chase Hansen
New York Giants
- Promoted: DB Montre Hartage, RB Alfred Morris
2020 NFL Cap Space, By Team
The trade deadline is in the rear view mirror, but teams are still keeping a watchful eye on their salary cap figures. For contenders, the available dollars can be used for late-season signings. For all clubs, a portion of the unspent dollars can be rolled over into future seasons, giving them a larger budget to work with in the first wave of free agency.
Here are the most recent figures for each team, via Over The Cap:
- Cleveland Browns – $31MM
- New York Jets – $30.4MM
- Dallas Cowboys — $28MM
- Jacksonville Jaguars– $26.3MM
- Philadelphia Eagles– $23.9MM
- Washington Football Team – $23.3MM
- New England Patriots – $21.8MM
- Denver Broncos – $19.8MM
- Miami Dolphins – $15.6MM
- Detroit Lions – $14.2MM
- Cincinnati Bengals– $12.3MM
- Indianapolis Colts – $10.7MM
- Los Angeles Chargers — $8.4MM
- New York Giants – $8MM
- Chicago Bears – $7.6MM
- Houston Texans – $7.5MM
- Los Angeles Rams – $6.9MM
- Pittsburgh Steelers – $6.9MM
- Green Bay Packers – $6.7MM
- Arizona Cardinals– $6.2MM
- New Orleans Saints – $6MM
- Las Vegas Raiders – $6MM
- Kansas City Chiefs – $5.7MM
- Carolina Panthers – $5.5MM
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers – $5.3MM
- Tennessee Titans – $4.6MM
- Minnesota Vikings – $3.8K
- San Francisco 49ers – $3.7MM
- Seattle Seahawks – $3.3MM
- Baltimore Ravens – $3.3MM
- Buffalo Bills – $3MM
- Atlanta Falcons – $1.8MM
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/7/20
Here are Saturday’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Activated from IR: TE Maxx Williams
- Promoted: DL Michael Dogbe, RB D.J. Foster, CB Jace Whittaker
- Waived: TE Jordan Thomas
Atlanta Falcons
- Activated from IR: CB Darqueze Dennard
- Promoted: LB Edmond Robinson, LB Pita Taumoepenu
- Placed on IR: CB Jordan Miller
Buffalo Bills
- Activated from IR: LB Del’Shawn Phillips
- Promoted: CB Dane Jackson, WR Jake Kumerow
Carolina Panthers
- Activated: DE Yetur Gross-Matos, RB Christian McCaffrey (story)
Chicago Bears
- Promoted: QB Tyler Bray, OL Dieter Eiselen, WR Dwayne Harris, DL Daniel McCullers, Badara Traore
Dallas Cowboys
- Placed on IR: P Chris Jones
- Promoted: P Hunter Niswander, RB Sewo Olonilua, QB Cooper Rush, CB Saivion Smith
Denver Broncos
- Promoted: S Alijah Holder
Detroit Lions
- Activated from reserve/PUP list: DE Austin Bryant
- Promoted: OL Marcus Martin
- Placed on IR: CB Darryl Roberts
Houston Texans
- Promoted: LB Nate Hall, DL Corey Liuget, OL Greg Mancz
Indianapolis Colts
- Activated from IR: LB Matthew Adams
- Promoted: WR Daurice Fountain, WR DeMichael Harris
- Placed on IR: WR Ashton Dulin
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Promoted: LB Joe Giles-Harris, S Doug Middleton, CB Josh Nurse
- Placed on IR: LB Shaquille Quarterman
Kansas City Chiefs
- Promoted: WR Gehrig Dieter, G Bryan Witzmann
Las Vegas Raiders
- Activated from IR: DT Daniel Ross
- Added to active roster: DE Chris Smith
- Waived: WR Rico Gafford
Los Angeles Chargers
- Promoted: RB Kalen Ballage, DE Jessie Lemonier, DB Quenton Meeks
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Brandon Facyson
Miami Dolphins
- Activated from IR: T Austin Jackson
- Promoted: WR Kirk Merritt
Minnesota Vikings
- Promoted: DT Abdullah Anderson, C Brett Jones
New York Giants
- Activated from IR: CB Brandon Williams
- Promoted: DB Montre Hartage, RB Alfred Morris, G Chad Slade
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Promoted: S Antoine Brooks, LB Jayrone Elliott
- Waived: RB Trey Edmunds, OL Stefen Wisniewski
Seattle Seahawks
- Activated from IR: DE Rasheem Green
- Promoted: RB Alex Collins, CB Jayson Stanley
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: DL William Gholston
Tennessee Titans
- Promoted: WR Cameron Batson, CB Breon Borders, RB D’Onta Foreman, LS Matt Overton, LB Wyatt Ray, DL Teair Tart
- Placed on IR: CB Tye Smith
- Waived: OL Daniel Munyer
Washington Football Team
- Activated from IR: WR Steven Sims
- Promoted: WR Jeff Badet, OL Ross Pierschbacher
- Waived: DE Nate Orchard
Bills Place LB Matt Milano On IR
Matt Milano missed time earlier this season but returned to play in Buffalo’s previous two games. However, he will be shelved for at least the Bills’ next three.
The Bills placed the fourth-year linebacker on IR Saturday. They had declared Milano out for Sunday’s game against the Seahawks due to a pectoral injury. He did not practice this week.
This is concerning for the Bills due to Milano’s initial injury absences — in Weeks 3 and 4 — coming because of a pec injury. Since returning, Milano has played a part-time role, coming off the bench and playing less than a third of Buffalo’s defensive snaps.
A Bills starter since his rookie year, the former fifth-round pick engaged in extension talks with the team this offseason. Milano, who made 101 tackles last season, has been a quality coverage linebacker for a team that has featured a top-tier pass defense. The Bills’ defense has regressed in his abbreviated season; DVOA places the team’s pass defense 22nd after top-five finishes in 2018 and ’19.
The Bills wrapped up extensions for fellow 2017 draftees Tre’Davious White and Dion Dawkins, leaving Milano in limbo. That raises the stakes for the remainder of his season, should he return from what appears to be a setback.