Buffalo Bills take massive steps back thanks to key injuries
Well, all those major steps forward we had been talking about, they just went away. Replacing them, are major steps backwards by the Buffalo Bills following the injuries of Sammy Watkins and first round draft pick Shaq Lawson.
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While the two injuries should allow them to play during the regular season, this news cannot be greeted well amongst many of the Bills’ fans. For one thing, these are two players that were supposed to help lead the Bills this season. With injuries all ready, the risk of re-injuring the affected area skyrockets.
The news has to be even more damaging for Sammy Watkins. Though he is and still will be a great football player, durability questions will continue to rise. Last season alone, Watkins had hip surgery, missed three games due to a calf injury, and also played through an ankle problem late in the season.
With a track record of both injuries and surgeries beginning to add up, it’s possibly of little surprise that Watkins had surgery to repair a broken bone in his foot and will be out at least through training camp.
Now while this may not concern some, it does concern me. Having covered some of Watkins games in high school while he was with the South Fort Myers Wolfpack, I know that Watkins was never injured. During his time at Clemson, Watkins was injured twice and missed only one whole game — two if you count the bowl game against LSU — during his three years with the Tigers.
This recent injury bug that he has had over the past year and a half is pretty concerning considering all of the above. Given the physicality of the league, it is possible that Watkins’ body is not holding up well. For the Bills and their fans though, lets hope that is not the case.
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As for Shaq Lawson, well this surgery has been a long time coming and was something the Buffalo Bills knew about when they drafted him. Though Lawson may have denied it, many with knowledge of shoulders — including myself — knew this would catch up with him eventually.
Thankfully, the aggravation of the injury was caught early enough that Lawson could return for some portion of this season. Depending on how well the surgery goes and how well Lawson follows the rehab schedule, the “Shaq Attack” should be in full swing with the Buffalo Bills.
One major concern though has to be the fickle nature of the human shoulder. While surgery should fix the problem, shoulder’s have been known to easily re-injure themselves following a surgical procedure. Again, it is entirely possible that Lawson will never regain the entire mobility of his shoulder.
Depending on the outcome of both Lawson and Watkins rehabs, the Buffalo Bills could be looking at a potential playoff season, or another year near the bottom half of the AFC.
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