ORCHARD PARK, NY — A war wages behind closed doors. It’s not broadcast to millions on CBS. It’s not revealed to the public via press conference. But this conflict gets as heated as anything we see at 1 o’clock on a Sunday.
Player vs. Doctor.
More accurately, the player who’s hellbent on gritting through an injury must wield a sword vs. an army of professionals trying to protect him — doctors, trainers, coaches, teammates. If it was up to DJ Moore? He would’ve played through his AC joint sprain. Shoot him up with whatever and get the hell out of his way.
Up to this week, the Bills managed to successfully keep Moore off the field. But enough was enough. Fresh out of the bye week, against the Baltimore Ravens, Moore would’ve steamrolled through a convoy of ‘roided-up security guards to line up for Snap No. 1.
“Going into this week,” Moore said, “I was like, ‘Ah, I hear y’all, but I’m going to go out there and play.’”
What did this scene look like? Connor McGovern, the team’s starting center, witnessed the contentious conversations. It was not typical No. 1 Wide Receiver behavior.
“They had to fight him the last few weeks to keep him out,” McGovern began. “And you don’t really see that a lot of times in top-end guys. If they’re not 100 percent, because they’re The Guy, they don’t want to go. He’s like, ‘Hey, I’m walking. I’m playing.’”
Linemen here loved it. It’s how they’re wired. When I jokingly suggest trainers had to put their bare hands on Moore to keep him off the field vs. the Los Angeles Rams and Las Vegas Raiders, McGovern suggests such a description actually hits the bull’s eye.