The Buffalo Bills appeared to have loaded the wagon to compete for the AFC East this offseason. In the first three rounds, they went defense with OLB Shaq Lawson, ILB Reggie Ragland, and DE Adolphus Washington. Those three picks gave head coach Rex Ryan exactly what he needed.
But Lawson, the 1st-round pick, injured his right shoulder in rookie minicamp and it requires surgery. He is now expected to miss almost the entire first half of the season. And if that wasn’t enough, receiver and 2014 1st-round pick Sammy Watkins is also out.
NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport reported on Monday that he suffered a broken small bone in his foot and had a screw inserted, per a source informed of the situation. Rapoport went on to say that the surgery took place more than three weeks ago.
Watkins needed to be around this offseason to continue to build chemistry with quarterback Tyrod Taylor. But the good thing there is he is expected to be available for training camp. The Bills were No. 28 in passing offense in 2015 so if Watkins is out longer for some reason, it won’t help.
Watkins was the bright spot of the passing game, leading the Bills with 60 catches for 1,047 receiving yards and nine touchdowns last season. When Watkins gets back is important because the Bills need all of the offense they can get with Lawson out on defense.
The force is not with the Bills these days as what started as a promising offseason went bad in a short period of time.