Bills Clips
Bills wide receiver DJ Moore was at Saturday’s practice in a red non-contact jersey and it remains to be seen if he’ll be in the lineup against the Rams on Monday night.
The Bills listed Moore as questionable to play due to the shoulder injury that kept him out of practice on Thursday and Friday. Head coach Joe Brady said that Moore will make the trip to Los Angeles, so the team has some time to make a decision about his status.
Defensive tackle Ed Oliver (knee) and wide receiver Joshua Palmer (shoulder) are not going to play this week. It will be the second game Oliver misses this season and the first time Palmer is out of the lineup.
Cornerback Dee Alford (ankle) and defensive lineman Landon Jackson (knee) join Moore in the questionable category.
Former NFL linebacker Darron Lee, a first-round pick of the Jets in 2016, faces charges in Tennessee of killing his girlfriend. Lee has a trial date in his first-degree murder case.
Via Fox Chattanooga, the trial against Lee will begin on September 20, 2027.
Lee entered no plea in response to the allegations, which operates under Tennessee law as a not-guilty plea.
The family of the victim, Gabriella Perpetuo, has filed a separate civil lawsuit arising from her killing. The family had been pursuing a potential claim against OpenAI, based on evidence that Lee used ChatGPT for help in how to deal with an “unresponsive” person.
Lee spent five years in the NFL, playing for the Jets, Chiefs, and Bills. He was a member of Kansas City’s Super Bowl LIV-winning team. He appeared in 58 regular-season games, with 38 starts.
Through the early weeks of the season, Bills quarterback Josh Allen was all alone as the betting favorite for MVP. As Week 5 arrives, Allen has company.
Currently, Allen and 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy have identical 3-1 odds to win the award.
Allen won it in 2024. That season included a 35-10 win over Purdy’s 49ers.
So far this year, both players have played at an MVP level.
Purdy, who has yet to take a sack, has the NFL’s top passer rating at a sky-high 126.3. He has gone four straight games with two or more touchdown passes and no sacks. That ties Eli Manning (2010) and Peyton Manning (2009) for the third longest streak in NFL history, including playoffs. The record is five, with Andrew Luck (2018) and Dan Marino (1983-84).
Purdy also has three straight games with two or more touchdown passes and no turnovers. That ties him for the longest streak in franchise history, with Steve Young (1987) and Joe Montana (1989).
Both Allen and Purdy have high-profile chances to improve their respective cases this weekend. Purdy and the 49ers face the Seahawks in Seattle for the big late-afternoon game on Sunday, and Allen and the Bills face the Rams in L.A. on Monday night.
Beyond Allen and Purdy at 3-1, Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence is 6-1 and Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is 6.5-1.
Rams head coach Sean McVay said early in the week that defensive tackle Aaron Donald was trending toward a return to the lineup against the Bills on Monday night and things remain on track in Los Angeles.
Donald moved from limited to full practice on Friday and confirmed at a post-practice press conference that he is planning on taking on Josh Allen in Week 5. Donald said there have been “no setbacks” while knocking on the podium and that his back is in much improved shape than it was a week ago.
“I feel good,” Donald said. “I feel a lot better than what I was.”
Donald did not play in Week 1 as he was still ramping up after deciding to come out of retirement. He had four tackles, a tackle for loss and a quarterback hit in his two appearances before sitting out of last Sunday’s win over the Eagles.
One week after the Patriots were bullied by the Jaguars, New England roared into Buffalo’s next stadium and gave the Bills their first loss there.
Appearing Tuesday on NBC Sports Boston, Patriots safety Kevin Byard explained coach Mike Vrabel’s strategy for giving the team a spark.
“He showed a video of the famous Allen Iverson, NBA Finals, making the three-point shot, stepping over Tyronn Lue,” Byard said. “So, at first, you don’t really know where he’s going with it. . . . I think the overall messaging was, ‘It’s time to start stepping over people.’ You know what I mean? It’s time to get back to where we’re stepping over people and making sure that we’re not about to be the team that’s gonna let people bully them. . . .
“So yeah, I think that was kind of the overarching message to, hey, we are physical. We are a tough team. Let’s, let’s start stepping over people kind of like how A.I. did in that video.”
It worked. The Pats were far more physical than they had been in Jacksonville, and in turn far more effective. The Patriots avoided a 1-3 start and a three-game hole in the AFC East. Instead, they’re only one game behind Buffalo — and they’ll have a chance to complete the sweep when the two teams meet again in Week 13.
Home field advantage is something that is talked about often in the NFL, but Bills cornerback Dee Alford didn’t feel much of one during last Sunday’s loss to the Patriots.
Alford said, via Nick Suss of ESPN.com, that the crowd at Highmark Stadium can get “super loud to the point where we’re not able to get the play as fast as we need it” and that leaves the defense scrambling because of communication breakdowns. During a press conference this week, Bills defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard was asked about Alford’s comments.
Leonhard acknowledged the difficulties that can arise in a loud environment, but said that the opposing team faces more of them and that the Bills have to view the home crowd into a plus rather than an obstacle.
“It’s always harder to communicate at home than it is on the road. If we complain about that, we are a———s,” Leonhard said. “We have to turn that into the biggest advantage we have. As hard as it is for us, it’s significantly harder for an offense. We have to find a way to make that an advantage for us. If we ever use that as a cop out — I have to be smart in how we game plan. There’s certain things you can do on the road that are a little bit easier than they are at home from a communication standpoint.”
The Bills won two of their first three games in their new stadium and they won’t be back there until November 1, so it will be a while before they get to test out any new strategies for dealing with the volume from the stands.
With Paris Johnson Jr. out for the season with a torn biceps, the Cardinals have added a former first-round pick to their offensive line.
Offensive tackle Jedrick Wills is signing with Arizona off of Buffalo’s practice squad, according to a report from NFL Network.
Wills, 27, was selected by Cleveland at No. 10 overall back in 2020. He missed the 2025 season, allowing his injured knees to fully heal after he struggled to play through the 2024 season.
Wills has started 57 games, all for the Browns. His time there coincided with that of current Cardinals QB Jacoby Brissett.
The Cardinals announced they’ve placed Johnson and tight end Hunter Long on injured reserve.
Veteran tight end Teagan Quitoriano was promoted to the 53-man roster off of Arizona’s practice squad.
Additionally, the Cardinals have re-signed tight end Kenny Yeboah to the practice squad, while also signing offensive lineman Austin Decals and safety Mark Perry to the unit.
Offensive lineman Vershon Lee and cornerback D’Shawn Jamison were released from the practice squad.
The Bills are not benching cornerback Maxwell Hairston, who has struggled this season. Bills coach Joe Brady is already manifesting a bounce-back game for Hairston on Monday Night Football in Week 5.
“Max Hairston’s going to make a play this week, and you guys are going to be asking me questions like ‘Oh man, what was it like seeing him respond from the previous game?’” Brady said, via Nick Suss of ESPN.
Hairston, a first-round pick in 2025, was beaten by Patriots receiver Romeo Doubs for two touchdowns in one-on-one coverage in a 29-26 loss to New England. Hairston would not speak to the media after the game, violating the NFL’s media access policy.
On Monday, Hairston held an impromptu news conference to apologize.
“Feeling very emotional,” Hairston said. “I let my emotions get the best of me, and I didn’t want to say something I might have regretted. You live and you learn. . . . That’s kind of immature, and I’m better than that. So I wanted to get that out of the way.”
The Bills rank 27th in passing yards allowed, and only the Lions are allowing more first downs. Hairston, though, has drawn the most criticism for his lackluster effort at times. He appeared to have an angle on Patriots tight end Hunter Henry on third-and-10, but didn’t go full speed and Henry picked up the first down, denying Josh Allen and the offense another chance with the ball.
Defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard said Hairston’s effort clearly wasn’t good enough.
Hairston addressed his play and his allowing his emotions to get the best of him.
“I have to be in control of my emotions within the game,” Hairston said. “It comes with learning, experiencing certain stuff. I have to be better in that aspect.”
It sounds like Aaron Donald’s comeback will continue in Week 5.
After Donald did not play in Sunday’s win over the Eagles due to back soreness, head coach Sean McVay told reporters on Monday that the hope is that Donald will return for the coming Monday night matchup against the Bills.
“That’s the direction it looks like it’s trending in,” McVay said, via Stu Jackson of the team’s website.
Donald, who has been dealing with back soreness, has played 54 percent of Los Angeles’ defensive snaps across two games this season. He’s registered four total tackles with one for loss and one quarterback hit.
Additionally, McVay noted the team is hopeful cornerback Jaylen Watson will be able to return this week after missing Sunday’s game with a shoulder injury.
The Rams’ first injury report of the week will be released on Thursday.
On Sunday, OBJ met EC3. And the stellar, game-winning catch made by Patriots receiver Efton Chism III will result in more chances to make more next-level grabs.
“Sure, of course,” coach Mike Vrabel told reporters on Monday regarding whether Chism has earned more opportunities. “That’s what happens. I mean, guys continue to take advantage of their opportunities, they get more opportunities. I mean, we’ve been finding ways to work Chis in there previously. And it’s a balance, but he certainly did a lot of things well. I know that he’ll continue to do things well for us and continue to know a bunch of different spots.”
On Sunday, Chism was on the field for 34 offensive snaps. Targeted four times, he had two catches for 42 yards, including the 23-yard clincher.
In Week 1 against the Seahawks, Chism was inactive. In Week 2 vs. the Steelers, Chism had 10 snaps; he was targeted once, for minus-2 yards. In Week 3 at the Jaguars, Chism had 16 snaps. He had one catch on two targets, for one yard.
So he has already been earning more work, one game at a time. And it looks like Chism will get even more.
Which means that, contrary to the prediction from Bills safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson, we probably will hear from him again.
