The Tennessee Titans will be without their starting quarterback when they take on the Buffalo Bills.
Will Levis won’t play against the Bills on Sunday as he’s dealing with a shoulder injury, according to multiple reports. The second-year quarterback was initially listed as questionable due to an AC joint sprain in his throwing shoulder, which he suffered on Sept. 30. He threw for just 95 yards in last week’s loss to the Indianapolis Colts.
Additionally, the Titans placed wide receiver Treylon Burks on injured reserve Saturday and promoted quarterback Trevor Siemian from the practice squad.
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Mason Rudolph will make his first start since he started the final three games of last season for the Pittsburgh Steelers, winning all three, including a 17-10 win on the road against the Baltimore Ravens in the season finale. He threw for 716 yards and three touchdowns with zero interceptions over those three regular-season starts. He also played against the Bills in a wild-card game, throwing for 229 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in the Steelers’ 31-17 loss.
Rudolph signed with the Titans during the offseason. He came in and finished off the Titans’ lone win, which came in Week 4 against the Miami Dolphins. He replaced Levis after the starter suffered an injury on Tennessee’s second drive and completed 9 of 17 passes for 85 yards. The Titans scored on seven of the 11 drives with Rudolph at quarterback as part of the 31-12 win.
Tennessee’s aerial attack hasn’t been stellar with Levis this season, ranking second-to-last in the league in passing (135 yards per game). As Levis has thrown more interceptions (seven) than touchdowns (five), wide receiver Calvin Ridley expressed his frustration after he didn’t record a catch on eight targets in their loss last week.
“I need some in the beginning of the f***ing game too,” Ridley told reporters. “S*** is getting f***ing crazy for me. It is what it is. I sucked today and need to get better.
“I gotta get the ball a little earlier in the game so I can be in the game, and here with the team so I can play well also.”
Ridley has just nine receptions for 141 yards and a touchdown so far this season.
As for Burks, head coach Brian Callahan hinted Friday that injured reserve was Burks’ likely destination after the 18th overall pick in the 2022 draft hurt a knee this week in practice. Callahan said Burks would miss “some time no matter what.”
Burks, acquired with the pick as part of the trade that sent Pro Bowl receiver A.J. Brown to the Philadelphia Eagles on draft night, has four catches for 34 yards this season. Burks has 53 receptions for 699 yards and one touchdown in 27 games for his career.
The Titans also signed defensive lineman Abdullah Anderson to the roster. Along with Siemian, they promoted defensive back Gabe-Jeudy-Lally from the practice squad for this game.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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