The Oakland Raiders and Buffalo Bills will kick off on Sunday in a match-up of 1-0 teams. Both squads are fairly healthy for the most part but missed significant contributors due to injury during Wednesday's practices.
Nine Raiders are dealing with injuries right now. Five Raiders did not practice at all on Wednesday: wide receiver Jacoby Ford, safety Michael Huff, safety Michael Mitchell, wide receiver Louis Murphy and defensive tackle Richard Seymour. Four other Raiders- tight end Kevin Boss, cornerback Chris Johnson, running back Darren McFadden and defensive end Jarvis Moss- were limited in practice but did practice to some extent.
The Raiders are certainly hurting on offense right now. With wide receivers Ford and Murphy out, Oakland's air attack will be depleted. The duo could still return in time for Sunday's game, depending on how fast they can recover. The ailing McFadden and Boss are dinged up but should be on the field against the Bills.
Buffalo has five players dealing with injuries. Wide receiver Marcus Easley, linebacker Robert Eddins and cornerback Terrence McGee did not participate in practice while linebacker Arthur Moats and defensive tackle Torell Troup were limited in practice.
In contrast to the Raiders' situation, the bulk of Buffalo's injuries are on the defensive side of the ball. Perhaps this match-up is optimal for both sides: a depleted offense and a depleted defense could cancel each other out without any real advantage to either side.
That's not something to bank on at this point though. The game is still four full days away, and a lot can change between now and then. Let's hope that all of the players mentioned above make a full return by Sunday.