Jon Feliciano will miss some time for the Bills, who placed the starting guard on IR. A calf injury will sideline Feliciano for at least the next three games.
The veteran blocker has established himself as a steady starter in Buffalo, after having been a four-year Raiders backup. The Bills have used Feliciano as a first-stringer in all 31 games during his tenure, but injuries have intervened in each of the past two seasons.
Feliciano missed a game earlier this year and was down for nearly half of last season. A torn pec sustained last summer delayed Feliciano’s 2020 season by seven games, but he did not miss any time after returning to Buffalo’s lineup.
The Bills have some depth up front, but both Feliciano and rookie Spencer Brown — a third-round rookie who has started the past three games — are out for Sunday’s game against the Jaguars. Brown is not on Buffalo’s IR, but the small-school product will miss Week 9 due to a calf injury. Cody Ford and Ike Boettger remain healthy guard options for the AFC East leaders. While Ford, Boettger and Brown have each been part-time starters, Feliciano has not given up his starting spot.
In addition to the Feliciano move, the Bills placed Mitchell Trubisky on their reserve/COVID-19 list. Trubisky has served as Josh Allen‘s backup this season. Davis Webbwill play that role Sunday, being bumped up from the practice squad. Jake Frommremains on Buffalo’s coronavirus list. The Bills also elevated offensive lineman Jamil Douglas and tight end Quintin Morrisfrom their practice squad.
Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline Tuesday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters. In addition to waiver claims, teams can begin constructing their 16-man practice squads today. These Bills, Dolphins, Jets and Patriots moves are noted below.
Here are Wednesday’s AFC East transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day.
As Matthew Fairburn of The Athletic points out, cutting Lewis came as a bit of a surprise considering the Bills’ lack of depth at cornerback. However, the reporter believes that today’s move is an indication that the team isn’t concerned about injuries to Levi Wallace, Dane Jackson and Taron Johnson. Lewis, a 2019 undrafted free agent, finished last season with seven tackles in five games (two starts). If he passes through waivers, he’ll likely end up on Buffalo’s practice squad.
The Bills became the latest team to officially announce their UDFA class as rookie minicamps approach. Buffalo had a small one, only inking six guys. Here they are:
Griffin is a cool one, since his dad is influential rapper Warren G. Buffalo signed Jacob Hollister this offseason but still don’t have a ton at tight end, so Morris could have a real chance of making the roster. He led Bowling Green in receiving the past two seasons, and had 649 yards and four touchdowns in 2019, his last full campaign.
Thompson was very productive in college as a four-year starter for the Aztecs. From his freshman-senior seasons, he racked up 11 interceptions, five fumble recoveries, and five forced fumbles. Tuitele is the cousin of current Bills defensive end A.J. Epenesa.
