On what turned out to be the last play of practice on Sunday, Tyrell Shavers, the backup receiver for the Buffalo Bills, injured his right ankle and had to be carted off the field at training camp.
In the end zone, Shavers made a catch and stumbled as he tried to shield the ball from rookie CB Maxwell Hairston. Coach Sean McDermott terminated practice a few minutes ahead of schedule because Shavers was on the ground for extended periods of time while receiving medical attention from the training staff.
Last season, the 25-year-old Shavers played in three games for the Bills after signing with Buffalo as an undrafted rookie free agency two years prior.
The Buffalo Bills had a few more updates on the injury and roster front as training camp rolled into another day, though not all of it was positive.
On Sunday, the team was without two key starters on offense and defense: linebacker Terrel Bernard and wide receiver Curtis Samuel. Both were held out of practice due to hamstring injuries. At this point, the team has not provided any further details on the severity of their conditions, leaving fans and media to wait until head coach Sean McDermott addresses the situation during his scheduled press conference on Monday.
While that news raises some concern, the Bills did get a bit of a boost on the health front as well. Tight end Dawson Knox and wide receiver Laviska Shenault were both officially activated from their respective injury lists after passing physical exams.
Knox had been sidelined for the first few days of training camp, placed on the non-football injury list due to a lingering hamstring problem. Shenault, on the other hand, had been on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list with a lower leg strain, also causing him to miss the first stretch of practices. Now that both have cleared medical evaluations, they’ll be able to rejoin the team on the field moving forward, which is good news for the offense as the Bills work to build chemistry and momentum during camp.
As the team continues to balance caution with preparation, getting key players like Knox and Shenault back while keeping a close eye on Bernard and Samuel will be crucial in the coming weeks.