CJ Spiller has been battling an ankle injury for the past few weeks, but the Buffalo Bills continue to start the running back as they battle struggling quarterback play. The ever-reliable Spiller has been the lone constant presence in the Bills starting lineup. While the running back could certainly use a week off to heal the nagging injury for good, Doug Marrone insists the Spiller is healthy enough to remain in the offense.
After being questionable for most of the week, Marrone confirmed that Spiller would play Week 7 against the Miami Dolphins. He notes that the running back is certainly not 100 percent healthy, but his production is still strong and the injury is making improvements. While the starting quarterback is still unknown, Spiller remains the center piece of the Buffalo offense.
"I can tell you that he's not 110 percent," Marrone said, via the Buffalo Bills team website. "It's just making improvement. You appreciate it as a coach and as a fan. Here's a player who's working every day, getting treatment three or four times a day, then going out on the practice field and trying to work through it. We appreciate that effort."
Spiller believes he will likely be dealing with this injury for a few more weeks and it just something he will have to get used to. He is hopeful that after the team's bye week he will be back to full strength, but until then he will just have to battle the pain.
"I think it'll be something that'll be healed up before the bye week," Spiller said. "I don't think it's going to be something that's going to linger into November. It's getting better and better each week and as long as it continues to do that I'll be fine. There are a couple of more hurdles that I have to get over, but I can definitely see the finish line of me getting back to 100 percent quickly."
With Spiller getting limited production, Fred Jackson could see an increased amount of playing time. Marrone has noted that Jackson has looked strong in practice and has earned an expanded role in the offense. The running back has done a great job showing versatility in his limited role. So far this season he has 344 yards rushing while also putting up 166 yards receiving on 21 catches. With the Bills working with uncertainty in the quarterback role, Jackson will be relied on heavily.
