This is the week teams want to get settled with their starting lineup and start to truly gear up for the regular season. It will not be that kind of week for the Bills. Three significant issues popped up Monday.
1. Running back Fred Jackson is unhappy.
We mentioned over the weekend that C.J. Spiller might be headed towards a starting role despite any proof that he’s as good a player as Jackson.
“I feel like a No. 1 back, and I should be treated like one,” Jackson said via the Buffalo News. “As far as what’s going on, you would have to ask them. I’m going to come out here and compete. I feel like I have been competing. I feel like I have done everything I can. It’s been like that for two or three years, and nothing has changed.”
Jackson mentioned possibly asking for a trade, and wanted to know where he stood. Coach Chan Gailey has to know Jackson is the team’s best running back, and will probably move to calm Jackson down.
2. The Bills don’t have a left tackle.
Demetrius Bell has started there throughout camp, but has looked terrible in the preseason. On Monday, the team started to rotate guard Andy Levitre at left tackle with the first unit.
“You would rather not look at those options at this time, but you have to,” Bills coach Chan Gailey said.
3. Donald Jones and Johnny White are out for the preseason.
The team’s starting receiver and third-string running back both took nasty hits to the head against Denver over the weekend. They won’t play again until Week One, according to the AP. Receiver Naaman Roosevelt is out for two weeks with an ankle injury.