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| WEEK IN REVIEW - AUG 13TH - AUG 19TH, 2001 | PREVIOUS WEEK |
Bills Face Major Injury In Win Over Eagles
The Bills played better in their 6-3 win over the Eagles that they did last week against the Rams. Unfortunately the win came at a great price, as Jerry Ostroski was lost for a majority of the season with a broken leg. We take a closer look at all the news and give you our take on the issues:
There were many positives that came out of the Bills win over the Eagles. Alex Van Pelt threw for 173 yards in completing 17 of 25 passes as he started and played the entire first half. Rob Johnson was given the night off to rest his injured finger. The running game was fantastic as all three backs ran the ball well. Travis Henry had 31 yards on 7 carries as he got the start. Shawn Bryson led the way with 51 yards on 10 carries and Sammy Morris chipped in with 35 yards rushing and 28 yards receiving. On the negative side the club had 16 penalties and despite dominating the game statistically they struggled to get the ball in the end zone as no touchdowns were scored in the 6-3 win. Our Take: There was a definite marked improvement over the opener against the Rams and that is a good sign. For all of Gregg Williams preaching as far as discipline goes, 16 penalties are a pathetic amount even for preseason. Another big concern is a lack of a third string quarterback as the two players battling for that job struggled in the second half. For more coverage of the game go to our gameday homepage. The crushing blow from the win was the broken leg that Jerry Ostroski suffered during the second series. The fractured tibia will have screws placed in it during surgery this week and he is expected to be sidelined at least three months. Corey Hulsey played well in his place. Bill Conaty was also banged up with a dislocated shoulder and his back up played well also. Our Take: While Conaty will be all right, the Ostroski injury brings up a huge dilemma. There is already a rookie starting at right tackle and any of the on roster replacements for Ostroski have little or no experience also. That is a scary proposition when the bullets fly for real. Expect the Bills to scour the waiver wire after cuts are made to bring in an experienced guard or tackle. The injury happened just two days after the club cut Robert Hicks, who was then picked up off of waivers by the Detroit Lions. Tom Donahoe said the move was made because of the development of the younger offensive linemen. Hicks never seemed to regain the confidence he lost last year and his second chance is now over with the Bills. His former teammate, Jamie Nails signed with the Dolphins this past week. Our Take: If Hicks wasn't in their plans than they did the right thing. The Ostroski injury came at an unfortunate time right after the release but he probably would have been gone anyway. On the injury front the Bills got more injured players back this week and had two other minor injuries in the Eagles game. Brandon Spoon and Sam Cowart returned to practice, Cowart played against the Eagles but Spoon did not. Travis Henry was cleared to play after missing practice time with a sore toe, he then left the Eagles game with a minor groin injury. Rob Johnson took the game off and missed three days of practice this week to rest his ailing finger that got banged up again against the Rams and in practice on Tuesday. Ruben Brown suffered a sore knee against the Eagles but should be fine. Our Take: Resting Johnson was definitely the right move at this point in preseason. He needs to get the swelling down in his finger while he can because he won't have time to rest during the regular season. Two games, two injuries to Henry? They may be minor but it could be a red flag that he suffers many minor ailments. For injury news all week long go to our Injury Page. Talk about it on The Stadium Wall
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