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Notebook: Buffalo Bills RB LeSean McCoy day-to-day

By The Sports Xchange
Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy looks for running room during a game against the New England Patriots. Photo by Matthew Healey/ UPI
Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy looks for running room during a game against the New England Patriots. Photo by Matthew Healey/ UPI | License Photo

Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy is considered "day-to-day" with a sprained ankle, coach Sean McDermott announced Wednesday.

McDermott offered little else on McCoy as the Bills prepare to play against the host Jacksonville Jaguars in Sunday's wild-card game (1 p.m. ET). The postseason contest is Buffalo's first since 1999.

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McCoy did not practice on Wednesday, three days after being carted off the field with a right ankle injury following a tackle by linebacker Chase Allen in the third quarter of the Bills' 22-16 win over the Miami Dolphins.

McCoy rushed 287 times for 1,138 yards and six touchdowns this season, with quarterback Tyrod Taylor ranking second on the team in most rushing statistics.

--Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Marqise Lee did not practice as he continues to deal with an ankle injury.

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Lee was injured in the first quarter of the Week 15 matchup against the Houston Texans and has yet to return to the field. Jacksonville, the AFC South champions, hosts the Buffalo Bills in Sunday's wild-card game (1 p.m. ET).

Lee led the Jaguars with 56 receptions and finished second on the team with 702 yards. He also recorded three touchdowns this season.

--Tennessee Titans running back DeMarco Murray did not practice again, dimming his chances of playing in Saturday's wild-card game at the Kansas City Chiefs.

Murray suffered a slight tear in his MCL in a Week 16 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. He sat out the regular-season finale against Jacksonville. Murray rushed for a career-low 659 yards this season and averaged just 3.6 yards per carry.

Backup Derrick Henry, who led the team with 744 yards rushing, made his second start of the season against Jacksonville and managed only 51 yards on 28 carries.

--Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones and running back Devonta Freeman were both limited at practice. Both players are expected to be available for Saturday's wild-card game at the Los Angeles Rams.

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Punt returner Andre Roberts missed practice for a second consecutive day due to knee and ankle injuries.

Jones had 88 receptions for 1,444 yards and three touchdowns this season. It marked the fourth straight season he amassed at least 1,400 receiving yards. Freeman led Atlanta in rushing with 865 yards and added seven touchdowns on the ground despite missing two games due to a concussion.

--Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Phillip Gaines was placed on injured reserve with a dislocated elbow, the team announced Wednesday.

Gaines sustained the injury during Sunday's 27-24 win over the Denver Broncos. The 26-year-old joins wide receiver De'Anthony Thomas and running back Akeem Hunt as being placed on injured reserve this week by the Chiefs, who host the Tennessee Titans in Saturday's wild-card matchup (4:35 p.m. ET).

Gaines recorded 30 tackles and three pass deflections in 14 games this season. He spent all four of his seasons with the Chiefs since being selected by Kansas City in the third round of the 2014 draft.

--The Dallas Cowboys started an overhaul of their coaching staff by firing assistants Wade Wilson and Joe Baker. The moves were not unexpected after Dallas finished 9-7 and missed the playoffs on the heels of winning the NFC East with a 13-3 record in 2016.

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Wilson, who had been the team's quarterbacks coach since 2007, was initially hired by then-head coach Wade Phillips and then retained by Jason Garrett when Phillips was dismissed.

Baker, the secondary coach, joined the Cowboys in 2012 as an assistant secondary coach. He coached the team's safeties in 2014 before he was elevated to secondary coach in 2016.

--Denver Broncos quarterback Trevor Siemian will travel a familiar road by undergoing surgery on his left shoulder for the second straight year.

Siemian was expected to have surgery on Wednesday on the heels of dislocating his shoulder following a sack by linebacker Barkevious Mingo in Denver's 25-13 win over the Indianapolis Colts on Dec. 14. He was placed on season-ending injured reserve the following day.

The 26-year-old Siemian is expected to miss the conditioning portion of the Broncos' offseason program, but could be ready to participate in OTAs. Siemian, who also had surgery on his left shoulder following the 2016 season, finished with 2,285 yards passing with 12 touchdowns and 14 interceptions this campaign.

--The Cincinnati Bengals signed offensive coordinator Bill Lazor to a new contract, the team announced. The deal comes one day after the Bengals signed head coach Marvin Lewis to a two-year contract.

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Lazor was promoted from quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator in September, replacing the fired Ken Zampese after the team failed to score a touchdown through the first two games of the season.

The Bengals showed a modest improvement under the 45-year-old Lazor's watch, but still finished 32nd in the NFL in yards per game and 26th in points.

--Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety T.J. Ward was arrested for possession of marijuana.

Ward was arrested in Tampa (Fla.) at 8:11 a.m. and charged with possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Department.

The three-time Pro Bowl selection did not occupy a jail cell and was released a few hours later after posting a bond of $2,500, per the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Department.

--The Fritz Pollard Alliance downplayed concerns over the Oakland Raiders' potentially side-stepping the Rooney Rule amid reports that Jon Gruden is expected to be the team's next coach.

The Fritz Pollard Alliance has promoted equal opportunities for minorities in NFL hiring since its founding in 2003.

"I would trust the judgment and integrity of (Raiders owner) Mark Davis and (general manager) Reggie McKenzie to the point that they have already spoken to minority candidates who could be available veteran coaches, just like Jon Gruden is a veteran ex-coach," Fritz Pollard Alliance chairman John Wooten told ESPN on Tuesday.

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Wooten noted the Raiders' history under late owner Al Davis and Mark Davis in hiring minority candidates, including making Art Shell the first African-American head coach in modern NFL history in 1989. Shell returned for a second stint with the team in 2006.

--The Minnesota Vikings on Wednesday signed Canadian Football League receiver Brandon Zylstra to a reserve/futures contract.

Zylstra led the CFL with 1,687 yards and 100 receptions and five touchdowns while playing for the Edmonton Eskimos this past season.

He is a native of Spicer, Minn., and attended Concordia-Moorhead College in Moorhead, Minn. Zylstra will be added to the 90-man offseason roster when the 2018 season begins in March.

-- Despite not playing a snap in 2017, Ryan Tannehill will be the starting quarterback for the Miami Dolphins in 2018.

Dolphins head coach Adam Gase left no doubt that Tannehill, who suffered a knee injury early in training camp and needed reconstructive surgery, will be the man next season.

"I see him as our starting quarterback in 2018," Gase told the Miami Herald on Wednesday, adding that Tannehill is on schedule to participate in spring workouts. "We get him back and he will probably be stronger than he's ever been."

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