Bills running back LeSean McCoy is expected to be in the lineup against the Bengals on Sunday after being listed as probable on the team’s final injury report of the week.
McCoy’s return to action this week was an unexpected development since he said he wouldn’t come back until he felt 100 percent after aggravating his hamstring injury by playing through it in the first few weeks of the season. On Friday, he conceded that he’s not 100 percent for this weekend but explained that the bigger picture made him rethink his approach.
“It’s a big one,” McCoy said, via the Buffalo News. “A lot of guys are banged up. Maybe get a big win here, get one more. Go into the bye week and have some time to get healthy. Full week of no running and just treatments. So that’s the mindset. Hurt or not, we need this win. So I’m out there for my teammates. I’ve been in the league enough to know when I can go and I can’t go. I feel like I’m healthy enough to go out there and perform. This is about being comfortable. I think when you’re not comfortable, and you’re no 100 percent, or not nearly close to 100 percent, you let your team down. I feel like this is a different situation. I feel a lot better. And I’m ready to go out there and play.”
The team and McCoy are expected to have a discussion on Saturday about how much work he’ll get against Cincinnati. That conversation will likely weigh the risks of making the injury worse before McCoy gets to rest over the bye week, but it seems that concern has taken a backseat to the team’s overall state heading into the weekend.
