Rex Ryan shuts down Tyrod Taylor this week, EJ Manuel to start again

Unlike last week, when the Buffalo Bills kept up the charade that Tyrod Taylor might play all the way up until Sunday, Rex Ryan admitted on Thursday morning that Taylor won’t play this week.

Taylor suffered an MCL sprain that was supposed to keep him out multiple weeks, and that has turned out to be accurate. EJ Manuel will start for the Bills a second straight week, when they take on the Jacksonville Jaguars in London on Sunday morning. Receiver Sammy Watkins will also miss Sunday’s game with an ankle injury suffered last week.

Manuel, a former first-round pick, looked good in the preseason. That led the team to cut Matt Cassel, who will start for the Dallas Cowboys this week, a move that has been criticized in Buffalo this week after Manuel didn’t play that well against the Cincinnati Bengals. Manuel rallied late to post a solid final line of 28-for-42 for 263 yards, one touchdown and one interception, and perhaps that will carry over to this week.

“It’s all about building off of what I did last week, about executing,” Manuel said.

But simply, Ryan wasn’t going to put Taylor in harm’s way by starting him before he’s healthy.

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“Not going to force him out there when he’s not fully healed,” Ryan said, according to the team.

The Bills, at 3-3, need to win Sunday’s game against the Jaguars or fall further back in the playoff race. It will have to be Manuel, so far a disappointment for Buffalo, who leads them there.

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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab