What Does Dawson Knox's Injury Mean for Bills?
The good news is that Bills tight end Dawson Knox obviously has a high pain threshold, because it turns out that he completed a two-point conversion pass to quarterback Josh Allen with a broken bone in his hand during Sunday night's 34-31 loss to the Tennessee Titans.
The bad news is that there is a fracture and it is unknown how long he will be out.
"I don't know much more at this point other than we'll just monitor it," coach Sean McDermott said Tuesday afternoon. "We'll see where it goes here."
McDermott went on to say that there are no other major injury issues for the team other than the usual soreness that most players deal with after six games.
Knox injured his hand before the Bills scored, ironically, on fellow tight end Tommy Sweeney's first career TD reception. But when Allen frantically tried to change the call on the conversion after Knox told him his hand was hurting, Knox convinced him he'd still be able to complete the pass.
"[Knox] looked at me and said, `I got it. I’ll get it to ya,' " Allen said. "So to put your body on the line like that and grit through it, that was a big-time play and that’s awesome when a teammate is willing to do that, and that’s why we love him."
Knox is in the midst of a breakout season (21 catches, 286 yards) that has him on pace to surpass the combined totals of his first two seasons. His five touchdown receptions have him on the verge of tying the team record of six in a season by a tight end, achieved by just three players in the 62-year history of the franchise.
Knox didn't catch a TD in this game but did catch all three passes thrown his way and had a 5-yard TD run on an end-around wiped out by a holding penalty.
In his absence, the Bills could turn to Sweeney and elevate practice-squad players Kahale Warring and/or Quintin Morris, a rookie. Warring was a third-round pick of the Houston Texans in 2019. He has three career receptions for 35 yards and was cut this summer by the Texans, Patriots and Colts before landing in Buffalo.
Sweeney missed all of last season due to myocarditis, a complication from a COVID-19 infection that threatened his career. He's in his third season out of Boston College.
The Bills probably would prefer Jacob Hollister, but they let him go at the end of training camp, when it became apparent that Knox was going to win the top job. Hollister signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Bills had long been rumored to be interested in trading for former Eagles tight end Zach Ertz, but the Cardinals pulled the trigger on a deal that became official Friday morning, taking him off the market as well.
Among the free-agent options they could pursue are Tyler Eifert and Trey Burton.
Nick Fierro is the publisher of Bills Central. Check out the latest Bills news at www.si.com/nfl/bills and follow Fierro on Twitter at @NickFierro. Email to Nicky300@aol.com.
