Bills will face Carson Wentz after Vikings rule out Kyler Murray

November 9 update: Palmer placed on injured reserve

Buffalo placed Joshua Palmer on injured reserve Monday after he missed the practice week with a hamstring injury. The Bills say he will miss at least four games. The team also elevated safety Geno Stone and receiver Trent Sherfield Sr. for Monday night’s game in Minnesota. Final inactive lists remain a separate pregame decision.

November 7: Palmer out; Bills await two line decisions

November 7 update: Buffalo ruled out receiver Joshua Palmer with a hamstring injury for Monday night. Left tackle Dion Dawkins, dealing with a rib injury, and left guard Alec Anderson, dealing with an ankle injury, are questionable. Dawkins missed all three practices; Anderson returned for limited work Saturday, according to the teams’ final reports.

The two offensive-line decisions matter against Minnesota’s pressure packages. Buffalo’s report identifies Tylan Grable as the likely replacement if Dawkins cannot play and Austin Corbett as the next option for Anderson. Right tackle Spencer Brown has no game-status designation. Neither do receivers DJ Moore and Keon Coleman or tight end Dalton Kincaid.

Buffalo also lists Greg Gaines, Jordan Hancock and Tyrell Shavers as questionable. Hancock and Shavers would need activation from injured reserve before playing, the Bills said. A questionable designation alone does not put either player on the active roster.

Minnesota’s Saturday report adds running back Demond Claiborne and receiver Jauan Jennings to the out list with knee and calf injuries, respectively. Murray remains out. Safeties Theo Jackson and Jay Ward are questionable; Christian Darrisaw, Jake Golday, Isaiah Rodgers and Andrew Van Ginkel have no game-status designations. The announced Wentz start and Monday’s 8:15 p.m. EST kickoff remain unchanged.

The November 5 quarterback announcement

Carson Wentz will start against the Bills on Monday night after Minnesota coach Kevin O’Connell ruled out Kyler Murray with a hamstring strain. O’Connell described Murray as week to week Thursday. Max Brosmer will serve as the Vikings’ backup.

Buffalo and Minnesota enter the game at 6-1. Kickoff is November 9 at 8:15 p.m. EST at U.S. Bank Stadium, according to the Bills’ official schedule. Buffalo lists ESPN and ABC among the television options.

Wentz has already helped Minnesota win

Wentz has already contributed to two Minnesota victories this season. He replaced Murray during the opener against Green Bay after Murray entered concussion protocol, then started the following week at Chicago. Murray returned in Week 3 and played the entirety of Minnesota’s next five games, the Vikings reported.

That experience gives Minnesota a recent basis for using its backup in a high-stakes matchup. Buffalo can prepare for the announced starter through the rest of the practice week, while the Vikings can organize their offense around a quarterback who has already handled meaningful snaps in this system.

The remaining injury and viewing details

Minnesota’s initial Thursday injury report also listed safety Theo Jackson as a nonparticipant with a quadriceps injury and left tackle Christian Darrisaw as limited with a shoulder issue. The club said formal game-status designations would follow Saturday. Those practice entries do not establish either player’s availability for Monday.

O’Connell said imaging had identified Murray’s strain and explained that an early return could risk a more significant injury. That is the coach’s assessment. The announcement supplies no return date beyond his week-to-week description.