Buffalo to ‘have a peek’ at EJ Manuel this week
Neither team did much by way of the passing game, but the Buffalo Bills didn’t need it in their 19-0 victory over the Miami Dolphins.
Backup quarterback Thad Lewis went 15-of-25 for 193 yards with an interception and Miami’s Ryan Tannehill went 10-of-27 for 82 yards – albeit while hobbled by a knee injury.
Another quarterback with a balky knee is Bills’ rookie EJ Manuel. Limited to 10 games in his inaugural season due to various knee ailments, Manuel was forced to miss another start Sunday.
According to the Buffalo Bills’ twitter account, head coach Dough Marrone will give Manuel a shot to play in their final game of 2013.
Marrone on EJ Manuel: "It's a process. We'll get him out there tomorrow and have a peek at him"
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) December 23, 2013
Manuel and the Bills are 4-6 in games in which he has started and the Florida State product has gone 180-of-306 for 1,972 yards with 11 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. Manuel has also rushed 53 times for 186 yards with an additional two touchdowns.
Per ESPN.com:
"We’ll note that the latest injury is to his left knee, the same one he hurt in the preseason that caused him to miss a brief amount of time. However, the more serious one he had in-season was to his right knee. Marrone said the Bills do not believe Manuel’s latest setback will require surgery after the season."
Of course playoffs are out of the question for the 6-9 Bills, so whether or not to agree with having Manuel play in their final game of the season at the New England Patriots comes down to a couple of factors: Is it a good idea to give him more experience in a playoff-type atmosphere – the Patriots are still vying for home field advantage and 1st-round bye – or is it a better idea to rest the rookie QB and get him ready for next season, and not chance furthering any knee injury?