The Buffalo Bills have an issue at wide receiver.
Stevie Johnson pulled up limping at practice Friday with what coach Doug Marrone labeled a hamstring injury. NFL.com's Ian Rapoport reported that Johnson had an MRI done, and it confirmed the hamstring strain.
"He's going to get evaluated, and it's always tough when those situations happen," Marrone told reporters, via the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. "It would be a major concern if we were talking about it during the season. Right now, a veteran player who has proved himself, we'll just see what the doctors say, it is what it is and we'll deal with it from there."
Hamstring injuries can be tricky -- of the nagging variety -- and we don't expect the Bills to push Johnson back too soon. He's spent most of camp assuming the Bills' slot position, with T.J. Graham and rookie Robert Woods lining up outside in three-receiver sets. In two-man alignments, Johnson has been positioned outside as the team's No. 1 target, meaning he'll see action all over the field in 2013.
It's not Johnson's first setback. He missed a handful of offseason practices with a slight fracture to his L-5 vertebra. As EJ Manuel edges closer to the starting quarterback job, the rookie passer needs Johnson and the rest of the Bills' weaponry healthy and able in time for Week 1.
Update: Marrone said Saturday that Johnson would be reevaluated after a week on the sidelines. "He's going to be out for a while," Marrone said, "and what I mean by a while is it's going to be at least a week and after that I'll probably come out with something and see where we are by then."
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