It wasn't the timetable he was hoping to get for his starting quarterback, but EJ Manuel's knee injury is going to keep Doug Marrone's top signal caller sidelined well into November.
The Bills head coach provided the details of the medical prognosis for Manuel's sprained LCL.
"I spoke to the doctors and it'll be four to six weeks from now," said Marrone. "So the earliest will be four and the latest will be six weeks without any setbacks. He's doing well and he's in rehab working hard."
Manuel began his rehab on Tuesday this week, 12 days removed from the Thursday night loss to Cleveland when it occurred (Oct. 3rd).
"Am I disappointed? No," said Marrone. "I want to make sure that he's healthy when he comes back. Just because you say four to six, it can be four, it can be six. It can be three or seven. It's four to six weeks and obviously from the standpoint of being disappointed we don't want him hurt at all. Obviously where he is in the rehabilitation process I'm happy that we're going to get him back out there."
Marrone: EJ Manuel "ahead of schedule"
Manuel was a quick healer in the preseason when he suffered a sprained left knee. Far from a lock to be ready for the Bills season opener after sustaining a knee injury in Buffalo's second preseason game Aug. 16th, Manuel returns in two weeks' time getting a full week of practice leading up to the home opener Week 1.
At this point however, Marrone isn't ready to assume the same will happen this time around.
"I think when he returns to practice I'll be able to tell you exactly where he's at," Marrone said.
