The Buffalo Bills have been cruising in recent weeks, but the task has become a little bit harder for them in Week 9 when they take on the Miami Dolphins in an AFC East battle. Star wide receiver Amari Cooper is inactive for the game due to a wrist injury, due to ESPN's Adam Schefter.
“Another big inactive: Bills WR Amari Cooper is inactive today due to his wrist injury,” Schefter reported on X, formerly Twitter.
Cooper was looking for a bounce-back game after catching just one pass for three yards last week against the Seattle Seahawks. Without him in the lineup, expect Keon Coleman and Khalil Shakir to get some more work on the outside. The Bills could also opt to use tight end Dalton Kincaid and running back James Cook some more in the passing game.
The Bills used Cooper a ton in his first game with the team even while he played a limited number of snaps. He was targeted five times in the Bills' Week 7 win against the Tennessee Titans despite running just 12 routes, catching four balls for 66 yards and a touchdown.
Cooper's addition has certainly given the Bills' passing game a massive boost, and they have played very well in recent weeks after a midseason slump on offense.
Amari Cooper injury could mean uphill battle for Josh Allen
The injury to Amari Cooper could send the Bills' passing game right back to where it was before they traded for the former Cleveland Browns star. In loss to the Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans earlier in the season, the Bills wideouts struggled mightily to generate separation against tight man coverage.
Cooper not only excels at that, but he bumps the rest of the wideouts down a spot on the depth chart, allowing them all to fulfill a smaller role that they're more suited for. Without him, the Bills might struggle to generate a lot of separation downfield against a Dolphins defense that has played some pretty good football this season.
There is also a good chance that the Bills have improved enough around Cooper in the last few weeks for this not to matter. Keon Coleman had a monster game in Seattle in Week 8 and Khalil Shakir has continued to build trust with Josh Allen. The Bills have also done a better job of getting Dalton Kincaid involved in the middle of the field, and James Cook has morphed into an explosive receiving weapon.
This version of the Bills has also been able to run the ball at will. After a shaky first few seasons, Cook is officially one of the best running backs in the NFL in 2024, and Buffalo seems like it found something in Kentucky product Ray Davis as the RB2. The run game may have to carry more of the load on Sunday without Cooper in the lineup, and it has shown that it is more than capable during this strong stretch of play.
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