Buffalo Bills wide receiver Joshua Palmer has drawn interest around injury report talks this week. The wideout has been flying under the radar this season with his production numbers, but he remains a useful weapon in head coach Sean McDermott’s offense.
Ahead of their Week 8 clash with the Carolina Panthers, let’s dive into Palmer’s injury status to see if he’ll be in action on Sunday afternoon.
Will Joshua Palmer Play in Week 8 Against the Panthers?
Palmer struck extra bad luck after the Bills’ Week 6 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, as Jay Skurski of The Buffalo News reported that the wideout was being evaluated for a lower-body injury from the game. Palmer caught a pass from quarterback Josh Allen over the middle of the field in the second quarter when he was dragged down awkwardly and stayed down.
While he walked off on his own and seemed okay continuing to play, he was later ruled out for the rest of the game.
On Oct. 15, coach McDermott said the receiver was considered week-to-week with an ankle injury, alluding to the fact that the incident was more serious than initially thought.
Ahead of their game against the Panthers, the latest update on Palmer is that he missed practice on Wednesday and Thursday. If he is to feature in their matchup on Sunday, he’ll have to log at least one practice on Friday, and then he will likely be listed as questionable for the game.
The experienced wide receiver has been producing consistent numbers this season, albeit in a conservative range. His best performance came in their Week 1 41-40 win versus the Baltimore Ravens, when he recorded 61 receiving yards.
He nearly eclipsed that game in the short time he was on the field against the Falcons. A 45-yard catch early in the first quarter went a long way for the wideout, recording 60 receiving yards before he was ruled out for the rest of the game.
If Palmer misses their upcoming game against Carolina, Allen will rely more on the likes of Khalil Shakir, Keon Coleman, and tight end Dawson Knox if Dalton Kincaid is ruled out. Heading into Week 8, the Bills have the second-best offense in the league based on PFSN’s Offense Impact metric. They have an impact score of 90.5 and are graded A-.
McDermott would like to have as many of his offensive weapons as healthy as possible for Sunday’s game against the Panthers. Carolina is on a surprising three-game winning streak, including a shootout win against the Dallas Cowboys’ high-flying offense. Given that Buffalo fell to the Falcons last time out, the team would like to return to the win column as soon as possible.
