A week ago it seemed that the Buffalo Bills had a major quarterback depth issue. With veteran free agent signee Kevin Kolb going on IR with a severe concussion, and star rookie first round pick E.J. Manuel nursing a knee injury (and recovering from minor surgery) Doug Marrone announced that the team was preparing as if the Week One starter would be undrafted rookie free agent Jeff Tuel.
That said, things have changed. Manuel has recovered from his surgery and has spent the last few days practicing with the Bills first team. Today coach Doug Marrone has announced that Manuel has recovered enough to be cleared to play this weekend and that he will get the start in the Bills’ season opener against the New England Patriots.
Manuel talked about his injury and recovery in a statement on the Buffalo Bills team website.
“Each day my injury has gotten better, and I’ve been doing two or three treatments a day,” said Manuel. “That’s helped me a lot.”
“I’m not really surprised,” he said. “I try to work hard at everything. I can control whatever I can control, and I can control trying to get my knee better, and that’s what I’ve done.”
“When you play, and if you’re going to play, you can’t think about any injuries that you have, whether it’s something you had a procedure on, or a sprained finger or something like that,” he said. “You’ve just got to go out there and play.”
Manuel’s play prior to his and Kolb’s injuris had Manuel firmly in control of the Bills QB competition. In the first two weeks of preseason the 16th overall pick went a combined 26-for-33 passing for 199 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions for a QB rating of 111.9.
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