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Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen's health status is one of many storylines entering Week 9's Sunday Night Football matchup between the Bills and Cincinnati Bengals.
Allen initially injured his throwing shoulder during the Bills' Week 6 victory against the New York Giants but continued to play through it. The injury was reaggravated when he landed on the shoulder during last week's Thursday Night Football win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Allen didn't participate in Wednesday's practice but told reporters he sat out as a precaution to be at his best for Sunday's game.
"If the game was today, I'm playing the game," Allen told reporters after Wednesday's practice. "But just in terms of making sure that it's not going to be super sore and wanting to be smart when we're throwing it, and that's up to our training staff."
Bills safety Damar Hamlin is making his first return to Paycor Stadium since the Monday Night Football game in Week 17 last season that was initially postponed and later canceled after Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest and collapsed on the field.
"I think it weighed on us quite heavily through the rest of the season and it was constantly on our minds, but for him to come back and obviously make the squad and be an inspiration, not just to us but so many people in the world," Allen said on the LetsGo podcast with Tom Brady. "He's done so much good not in just this area alone but in the entire country in terms of bringing awareness to CPR."
The Bengals are on a three-game winning streak, including last week's 31-17 victory against the San Francisco 49ers. Quarterback Joe Burrow had a career-high 87.5 completion percentage last week and threw three touchdowns with no interceptions.
Burrow started the season recovering from a calf injury, while the Bengals got off to a 1-3 start. Now 4-3 and facing a Bills squad seeking to avenge last season's playoff defeat, the Bengals have something to prove.
"We're going to have to beat teams like this if we're going to get to where we're going to get to," Burrow told reporters after Wednesday's practice. "It's a great team with a great quarterback and a really good defense, a team that obviously we played in the playoffs last year and we have a chance to play again, so it's going to be a fun one."
How to Watch Bills vs. Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals will host the Buffalo Bills on Sunday Night Football with an 8:20 p.m. ET kickoff. Mike Tirico (play-by-play), Cris Collinsworth (analyst) and Melissa Stark (sideline reporter) will call the action on NBC. Fans can stream the game on Peacock and other streaming options.
Bills vs. Bengals Injury Report
Bills: Newly acquired cornerback Rasul Douglas missed practice Wednesday with one of the more interesting explanations to hit an injury report in sometime: "just got here."
Allen (right shoulder), cornerback Kaiir Elam (ankle), safety Damar Hamlin (illness) and linebacker Baylon Spector (hamstring) didn't participate in Wednesday's practice.
Tight end Quintin Morris (ankle) was a limited participant.
Bengals: Trey Hendrickson (foot), defensive tackle Josh Tupou (shoulder) and safety Tycen Anderson (knee) didn't participate in Wednesday's practice.
Offensive tackle Orlando Brown (groin), linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither (knee) and running back Joe Mixon (chest) were limited participants.
Betting Info for Bills vs. Bengals
The oddsmakers seem to expect a close matchup. BetMGM has the Bengals favored by 1.5 points with the over/under set at 49.5 points. Buffalo is +105 on the money line and the Bengals are -125.
About the writer
Nubyjas Wilborn is Newsweek reporter based in Auburn, Alabama. Wilborn joined Newsweek in 2023 after winning the 2022 National Sports ... Read more