The Buffalo Bills coaching staff held their weekly Monday press conferences as they turn the page to Sunday's home AFC Divisional round matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Here are the top things to know:
Injury updates heading into AFC Divisional Round
The Bills had a much lighter injury report list heading into the Wild Card round compared to previous weeks and it appears that'll be the trend this week as the team gets set to face the Bengals in the Divisional round.
On Monday, Bills head coach Sean McDermott only indicated CB Dane Jackson as a player who got dinged up against the Dolphins. Jackson left Sunday's game with a knee injury and he's listed as day-to-day, according to McDermott. Jackson could have returned against Miami if needed.
"We'll see where it goes," McDermott said of Jackson's status for the Bengals game.
As for two players on IR who opened up their activation window last week, S Micah Hyde and WR Jamison Crowder, some clarity was provided on their situation for the upcoming game.
Hyde will not play against the Bengals, though McDermott isn't sure if Crowder will be in the same boat.
Buffalo D wants to pressure Joe B, while not overcomplicating things
While Buffalo avoided major injuries in the Wild Card round, the same can not be said for the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bengals could be down as many as three starting offensive lineman on Sunday.
They were already without starting right tackle La'el Collins (ACL) and starting right guard Alex Cappa (ankle) heading into the Wild Card game against Baltimore. Things got worse when left tackle Jonah Williams left the game on Sunday with what has been diagnosed as a dislocated knee cap, per NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport. Bengals coach Zac Taylor called Williams "week-to-week" during his Monday press conference.
Those injuries could give Buffalo the upper hand up front defensively as it got four sacks against the Dolphins. In addition, the defense produced 11 QB hits and seven tackles for a loss.
Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier detailed Monday that the team hopes it can replicate that performance against another potent offense.
"We'll have our hands full trying to come up with ways to get (Joe Burrow) to hold the ball. But that's the goal to get him to hold it so we can get after the quarterback," Frazier explained.
One of the keys to slowing down Joe Burrow and Co. is getting pressure on Burrow while also disrupting the timing of the Bengals' wide receiving core. But Bills DC Leslie Frazier knows that's easier said than done.
"There are a lot of different things different teams have tried, but not with a lot of success," he said. "We're going to try to come up with a way to disrupt them as best we can."
Now, before the Damar Hamlin incident on which halted play on Monday Night Football between the Bills and Bengals on Jan. 2, Cincinnati took the opening possession down the field for a touchdown. It wasn't the ideal start for the Bills' defensive unit and Frazier was asked about the possibility of overcorrecting the team's game plan heading into the Divisional game when they just prepared for the Bengals less than a month ago.
"I think you've got to be careful about digging too much, trying to uncover this or that. Because we spent a lot of time prior to our last game, and you're right it's only been three weeks. They've only played two games since we played them and same with us. So you have to be careful of overthinking it, overanalyzing it," Frazier shared.
