McCoy likely to suit up for Bills
It seems Buffalo’s leading rusher will play Monday night. New England’s? Doubtful.
ESPN reported Sunday morning that Bills running back LeSean McCoy — although listed Saturday as questionable by the team — is expected to clear concussion protocol and play against the visiting Patriots (8:15 p.m. EDT, TSN via ESPN), in a battle of AFC East rivals.
New England is 5-2, Buffalo 2-5.
It’s Buffalo’s first time playing host to a Monday Night Football game in 10 years.
McCoy, in his 10th NFL season, has rushed for 244 yards in six appearances.
He left last Sunday’s 37-5 loss in Indianapolis after landing on his head on a hard tackle shortly after opening kickoff, and did not return.
The 30-year-old practised with teammates on a limited basis from Thursday to Saturday, per the NFL injury report.
That suggests McCoy is in the final stages of the league’s five-step concussion protocol, because Step 2 is light aerobic exercise, Step 3 introduces strength training, and Step 4 adds non-contact, football-specific activities such as throwing, catching and running.
A player is allowed to return to play only after being examined and cleared by both the independent neurological consultant assigned to his club and a team physician, which is Step 5 of the protocol.
How anyone — as a source for a report — could predict such clearance ahead of such dual examinations seems impossible, unless McCoy was already cleared.
As for rookie Sony Michel, New England’s leading rusher with 422 yards, he hurt his knee in last Sunday’s 38-31 victory at Chicago and did not return. He’s listed by the team as doubtful for Monday’s game.
While Michel did not practise Thursday or Friday, he did so on a limited basis Saturday. New England has won four games in a row after starting 1-2, in spite of absences of the top position talent that surrounds quarterback Tom Brady.
Top receiver Julian Edelman sat out the first four weeks because of a drug suspension. Tight end Rob Gronkowski missed last week’s game with a back injury, but suggested Saturday he expects to play in Buffalo, his hometown.
Now Michel’s status is up in the air.
And high-performing wideout Josh Gordon, acquired via trade from Cleveland on Sept. 17, is still getting up to speed with the Patriots playbook.
“I think everyone’s been trying to just improve on a weekly basis,” Brady said Saturday.
“We haven’t had that much time with the whole group together, between Jules, Josh, Gronk, Sony. I think that’s probably still in its infancy in a way. We’ve got a lot of room to grow.”
Bills fans are hoping such growth doesn’t take place Monday. Brady has defeated the Bills 14 times in 16 starts in Buffalo.