Thad Lewis won’t have Stevie Johnson available to run down passes in his first start at quarterback for the Bills.
Johnson is inactive for Sunday’s game against the Bengals after missing the entire week of practice while in California following a death in his family. Johnson also suffered a back injury in the Week Five loss to the Browns and coach Doug Marrone said Friday that the team would have to make a game-time call on Johnson because they wouldn’t have a chance to assess his condition until he was back in Buffalo.
T.J. Graham and Robert Woods are listed as the starting receivers for the Bills.
Things look better on the defensive side of the ball for Buffalo. Safety Jairus Byrd and cornerback Stephon Gilmore are both in the lineup for the first time in the regular season, which should provide the Bills defense with a solid boost as they try to knock off the Bengals.