Forgive Buffalo for holding its breath for a few minutes Saturday afternoon.
Running back C.J. Spiller, the Bills' best offensive player, immediately reached for his right knee following a 2-yard touchdown run in the first quarter of Saturday's 30-7 preseason loss to the Washington Redskins.
Moments later, the Bills' official Twitter account confirmed that Spiller was "OK." According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Spiller simply suffered a cut on his knee after taking a hit from another player's spike.
The star tailback returned to the game in the second quarter, looking none the worse for the scare.
While the news on Spiller is overwhelmingly positive, the Bills weren't so fortunate with quarterback Kevin Kolb, who was injured on the same drive. Starting in place of injured rookie EJ Manuel, Kolb was kneed in the back of the helmet during an 8-yard run, according to The Associated Press, but he stayed in the game for four more plays, the last being Spiller's TD run.
The Bills confirmed that Kolb was being evaluated for concussion-like symptoms. It's a major concern for the Bills, not just because of Manuel's knee scope, but also in consideration of Kolb's concussion history.
After sustaining multiple concussions with the Philadelphia Eagles early in his career, Kolb was concussed two more times in two years with the Arizona Cardinals. Symptoms from his late-season 2011 concussion persisted for more than three weeks into the offseason.
If Kolb and Manuel are unable to return for the Bills' season opener, undrafted rookieJeff Tuel could be in line to start versus the New England Patriots.
UPDATE: Injuries continued to pile up for the Bills in the first half. Cornerback Stephon Gilmore was ruled out for the rest of the game with a wrist injury. NFL.com's Ian Rapoport reported that an MRI on the wrist was likely Sunday, according to a source who spoke with Gilmore.
Safety Da'Norris Searcy went to the Bills' locker room to be evaluated for a possible head injury. Searcy did not return to the game.
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