Bills place Kiko Alonso on NFI list, sign LB Stevenson Sylvester
By Dan Zinski
What are the Buffalo Bills going to do without stud second year linebacker Kiko Alonso, who is likely out for the season after tearing his ACL while working out?
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They still don’t know. Right now they’re just going through all the procedural formalities with Alonso. Thursday Buffalo placed Alonso on the active/non-football injury list and signed former Steelers linebacker Stevenson Sylvester to take his spot on the roster.
A fifth round pick by the Steelers out of Utah in 2010, Sylvester has appeared in 50 career games with 2 starts, notching 22 tackles. He is a depth pickup who will bring some special teams production to Buffalo.
Obviously, Sylvester is no replacement for Kiko Alonso, who burst on the scene in 2013 to win Defensive Rookie of the Year. The second-round pick racked up 159 tackles and two sacks and forced five turnovers for the Bills last year.
The Bills are not going to get numbers like that from any one man on their roster, most likely. The best they can hope for is that someone can step up and fill in adequately, so their overall defense doesn’t drop off too much.
The best Alonso can do is rehab his butt off and get back for the 2015 season. The door is still being left slightly open for him to get back late in the year but that would be silly and unrealistic.
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