Sammy Watkins Set To Return
- Bills No. 1 receiver Sammy Watkins hasn’t seen the field since Week 2 on account of a foot injury, but it appears he’ll return Sunday against Jacksonville. “As long as there’s not another setback or anything like that, I feel pretty good about him playing,” head coach Rex Ryan said Thursday (via Mike Rodak of ESPN.com). Watkins, whom the Bills designated to return from injured reserve Wednesday, will only be available on a limited basis if he does play Sunday. Nevertheless, his presence will be a welcome one for a wideout-needy Buffalo team that likely won’t have Robert Woods in its lineup because of a knee ailment.
Suspension Looming For Seantrel Henderson?
Bills right tackle Seantrel Henderson served a four-game suspension to begin the season because of a violation of the NFL’s substance abuse policy. Now, a month and a half after the Bills activated Henderson, another ban is imminent for the third-year man, reports Jay Skurski of the Buffalo News.
Henderson’s previous suspension resulted from medicinal marijuana use, and that’s likely to be the case again this time. The 24-year-old has been using it to treat Crohn’s disease, which he was diagnosed with last year, but the league hasn’t been sympathetic.
“I’ve got doctors telling me this is the No. 1 medicine that would help your disease,” Henderson said last month, according to Skurski. “You try to tell that to the league and it seems like they didn’t care too much.”
While Henderson’s marijuana use dates back to his time at the University of Miami (one reason he fell to the seventh round of the 2014 draft), he insists he now utilizes it only to treat his disease.
“I hadn’t even been thinking about marijuana until it was brought up to me by a doctor,” he said. “Since I’ve been in the league, I’ve been in the program. I got drug tested three times a week. There’s no recreational use. There’s none of that.”
Unfortunately for Henderson, even though the majority of states – including New York – allow some sort of medical marijuana use, it doesn’t appear the league is willing to soften its stance. However, various executives around the sport are pushing for less draconian measures.
Henderson has played in only one game this year after starting in all 26 appearances during his first two seasons – including 16 as a rookie. Thanks in part to his health issues, Henderson lost the Bills’ No. 1 right tackle job to Jordan Mills.
Bills WR Sammy Watkins Returns To Practice
Sammy Watkins will return to practice for the Bills today, GM Doug Whaley told WGR 550. The Bills have until Dec. 14 – 21 days from today – to activate him to their 53-man roster. 
Watkins has been on injured reserve since Sept. 30 when his foot injury became too much to play through. To date, Watkins has appeared in only two games this season. Now, he is eligible to play in Sunday’s game against the Jaguars, but it’s not immediately clear whether that is a real option. After practice today, we could get a clearer idea of Watkins’ timetable.
The Bills would certainly like to get Watkins on the field this weekend, particularly given Robert Woods‘ knee sprain. Without Woods and Watkins, Buffalo is looking at a scenario where the recently un-retired Percy Harvin is arguably the No. 1 pass catching option along with Marquise Goodwin, Justin Hunter, Walter Powell, and Brandon Tate.
Watkins has shelved with six receptions for 63 yards in his two games. In his 13-game season last year, Watkins hauled in 60 passes for 1,047 yards and nine touchdowns.
LeSean McCoy In Line To Play Sunday
- Bills running back LeSean McCoy had a surgical procedure on his thumb Monday but he will be ready to play this Sunday, a source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). McCoy has matched his career high with 5.2 yards per carry thus far this season.
Bills WR Robert Woods To Miss Games?
The Bills haven’t had the best of luck when it comes to their wide receivers. Early in the season, Sammy Watkins was sidelined with a serious injury. Now, the next man up could be down for a while. Wide receiver Robert Woods has suffered a knee sprain, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter), and he could miss some time. 
While much of the focus in Sunday’s Bills-Bengals game was on the injuries to A.J. Green and Giovani Bernard, Buffalo also lost a key player early in the game when Vontaze Burfict slammed into Woods’ leg. Woods left Cincinnati on crutches, which isn’t a great sign for his status going forward.
If Woods misses multiple weeks, the Bills don’t necessarily have to sign another receiver to take his place. The team already has Percy Harvin, Marquise Goodwin, Justin Hunter, Walter Powell, and Brandon Tate on the depth chart. And, of course, they’re hoping to get Watkins back in the lineup soon.
Bills’ Percy Harvin Wants To Play In 2017
Seemingly out of nowhere, Percy Harvin returned to the Bills earlier this month, ending his brief retirement. It was the Bills that initiated contact and Harvin decided to play again without much previous consideration. It’s early into Harvin’s comeback, but he already says that he has interest in continuing his career beyond 2016 (Twitter link via Mike Rodak of ESPN.com). 
Right now, Harvin says that he feels good and apparently isn’t troubled by his hip injury or any of the other maladies he has suffered over the years. He expects to be “full go” this Sunday against Cincinnati this weekend after taking significant first-team reps today, which means that we are close to getting our first real glimpse of Harvin. He was on the field for 21 snaps on Nov. 7 against the Seahawks, but was only used as a decoy in an attempt to fluster his former team.
The Bills have struggled since their four-game winning streak earlier this year and the hope is that Harvin can inject some new life into the offense. Playing on the prorated portion of a one-year, $1.5MM deal, it’s a low-risk move for Buffalo. If all goes well, it sounds like Harvin will have interest in a new deal this spring.
Bills Fed Up With Marcell Dareus?
Thanks to injuries and his suspension, Marcell Dareus has appeared in just one game for the Bills this season. During his ban, Dareus let himself go and some in the Bills organization are frustrated with his perceived lack of effort, according to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link). 
Some team officials would like to cut ties with the defensive tackle, but that’s easier said than done given the money owed to him going forward. The Bills would be on the hook for tons of guaranteed cash, money that was given to him a little over a year ago in a mammoth extension worth $95MM over six years with the potential to crack the $100MM mark. Typically, a drug policy violation would allow the Bills to get out of all guarantees, but a rare clause in his contract limited the punishment to only the year of the misstep. In other words, Dareus’ 2016 guarantees went out the window, but all other guarantees through 2021 remained untouched.
A defensive tackle under old head coach Doug Marrone, the Bills switched Dareus to nose tackle spot under Rex Ryan last year. Dareus’ gaudy sack totals went away, but he was still a powerful run stuffer and Buffalo felt compelled to lock him up. Given the headaches of this season, the Bills are unquestionably regretting their decision. Trouble is, there’s no easy way out with the soon-t0-be 27-year-old.
Bills Sign James Ihedigbo
Finally, James Ihedigbo has found work in 2016. The veteran defensive back has signed with the Bills, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). 
Ihedigbo comes to Buffalo roughly two weeks after safety Aaron Williams was placed on injured reserve. Williams’ neck injury left the Bills with a less-than-stellar group of safeties to draw from, leading the Bills to add a proven veteran in Ihedigbo. Although Ihedigbo did not play well in 2015, he is not far removed from his career-best season in 2014.
The veteran, who has history with Rex Ryan when they were both with the Jets, finished out 2015 as Pro Football Focus’ No. 64 ranked safety out of 69 qualifiers. The year before that, Ihedigbo was strong as he saw time at both strong safety and free safety. The Dolphins passed on him as a depth option last month, but he could be in store for a feature role in the Bills’ banged up secondary.
To make room, Duke Williams has been cut by Buffalo. The former fourth-round pick took to Twitter to thank Bills fans for their support on Tuesday afternoon. The safety appeared in every regular season game for the Bills last season but has not seen the field in 2016.
Bills Work Out Three Lineman
- Offensive lineman Mike Liedtke worked out for the Bills today and will audition for the Buccaneers tomorrow, agent Brett Tessler tweets. The 24-year-old has previously spent time with the Jets, Chiefs, and Dolphins.
- The Bills also worked out a pair of centers, according to ESPN’s Adam Caplan (via Twitter): Dalton Freeman and Marcus Henry. The team ultimately signed Freeman to the practice squad.
[SOURCE LINK]
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/14/16
Here are today’s practice squad moves:
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: C Dalton Freeman
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: TE Marcel Jensen