2024 Week 18 Injury Report: Buffalo Bills vs New England Patriots

As the 13-3 Buffalo Bills prepare to face the 3-13 New England Patriots in the final week of the regular season, the Bills are looking healthy at just the right time for their playoff run.

With a firm grip on the No. 2 seed, Buffalo is taking a strategic approach to this game. The Bills will rest multiple starters, turning this week into a de facto bye.

Quarterback Josh Allen is expected to start, but he’ll likely only see a few snaps to keep his NFL QB active game streak intact.

The only notable injury for Buffalo is linebacker Terrel Bernard, who is officially OUT, while wide receiver Curtis Samuel is QUESTIONABLE. On Saturday, the team also downgraded Amari Cooper to OUT.

He will not travel and has been excused for a personal family matter.

On the other side, the Patriots are limping toward the finish line with far more injury concerns. Four players have been ruled OUT, and six more are QUESTIONABLE heading into Sunday’s matchup.

It seems like New England could use a few extra massages—just like their owner, Robert Kraft. The Patriots are hurting, and with their playoff hopes long gone, they’ll be hoping for a better start to the 2025 season.

It’s clear: the Bills are healthy, rested, and ready to roll, while the Patriots are banged up and hoping to make it through the week without adding more to their injury report.

OUT

LB Terrel Bernard

Bernard did not leave last week’s game but landed on the injury report with a ‘quad’ injury. It was reported he was getting his upper thigh wrapped up sometime in the third quarter, which must be limiting him this week.

It is unclear the mechanism, but potentially a deep bruise is the culprit. He may have been able to play this week, but the team will be very conservative, and he is expected to be back next week for the playoffs.

It is a good sign he was able to practice in limited fashion on Thursday and Friday, after he was a DNP on Wednesday.

WR Amari Cooper

Cooper wasn’t listed on the injury report when practice started this week but did get listed on Thursday and Friday with a ‘back’, however he was able to participate in full each day.

The injury occurred when he landed roughly on his tailbone during his TD catch against the Jets last week.

There was not much concern, but he did take a while to shake off the injury. He was checked and quickly cleared for a head injury after the play.

Cooper himself later revealed the real reason he laid on the turf after the play. It was due to hitting his tailbone.

Overall, I do not see this as a major concern. His reason for downgrading was also due to a personal family matter. Hopefully it is resolved by next week. 

QUESTIONABLE

WR Curtis Samuel

Samuel has been listed with a ‘rib’, which was sustained three weeks ago in the Detroit game. Ribs generally take 2-4 weeks. This has caused him to miss the last two games, although he has been able to practice in limited fashion each week he has missed, as well as this week.

He appeared to be trending to not playing, but with absence of Amari Cooper this week, and no practice squad WR called up, he should be set for some action on Sunday.

ALSO LISTED

S Damar Hamlin

Hamlin was an interesting addition to the injury report three weeks ago because he was added on a Thursday, the day the Bills didn’t practice due to snow, yet he was a full participant the day prior.

He has missed the last three weeks and is still only a limited participant in practice this week with ‘ribs’. Again, ribs generally take 2-4 weeks, and he is expected to start and play often on Sunday.

S Taylor Rapp

Taylor Rapp has been on the injury report with neck and/or shoulder injuries the past seven weeks.  He has missed two games, which appeared to be from a collision with Rasul Douglas in Week 14 against the Rams.

Rapp, listed with a ‘neck’ the past three weeks, was able to return to play in Week 17 against the Jets. He was a limited participant in practice again this week but is expected to play alongside Hamlin this Sunday.

DB Cam Lewis 

Lewis started at safety in Week 15 and 16, in the absence of Rapp and Hamlin, but started dealing with a ‘shoulder’ injury that caused him to miss Week 17. He played nearly 100% of the snaps in Week 16, which is perplexing why he needed to miss Week 17.

Lewis is set to return to playing this week after one missed game. He likely has a mild sprain, most common is the AC joint, which takes about 1-2 weeks to recover (1).

QB Josh Allen

Allen has been listed on the injury report for the past two weeks with a ‘R shoulder/R elbow’. The shoulder injury was likely from a rough fall late in the Lions’ game in Week 15 that required an x-ray after the game. This is likely a very minor AC joint sprain of his throwing shoulder.

As for the elbow, this was more recent from the Patriots’ game in Week 16. Allen banged his elbow on an opponent’s helmet which caused him to lose feeling in his hand for 5-10 minutes.

The injury was to his funny bone area, which essentially is compression of his ulnar nerve. Allen has two documented injuries to his elbow’s UCL (Tommy John Ligament), which creates some uneasiness about the overall health of the area.

However, based on his bone structure, he should be well protected in his cubital tunnel. He is expected to take a few snaps and then exit this Sunday to extend his NFL-leading QB activate game streak.

OTHER LISTED PLAYERS

The following players were listed on the injury report, but were full participants the whole week and will play;

OT Spencer Brown (neck)

DT DeWayne Carter (wrist)

CB Rasul Douglas (knee)

TE Dalton Kincaid (knee)

P Sam Martin (back)

LB Matt Milano (biceps/groin)

TE Quintin Morris (shoulder/groin)

DT Jordan Phillips (back)

DE Dawuane Smoot (wrist)

LB Dorian Williams (elbow)

CitationTotal Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine. (n.d.). AC joint separations in the NFL. Retrieved December 14, 2024, from https://www.totalorthosportsmed.com/ac-joint-separations-in-the-nfl/

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