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Yearly reminder that injuries make and break NFL seasons

Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

The Buffalo Bills have lost two starters to injuries for at least a couple of months, and maybe longer: former first-round pick Sammy Watkins broke his foot, while current first-round pick Shaq Lawson needs shoulder surgery. That is, obviously, not a good thing for Buffalo.

Injuries are crucial in the NFL, and not just in the case of quarterbacks. You can make the case that Vincent Jackson's injuries and Kwon Alexander's four-game suspension at the end of last season directly led to Lovie Smith's firing. Gerald McCoy's limitations throughout the season, as well as Clinton McDonald's injury didn't exactly help, either.

So far, the Bucs haven't had any injuries. And by "so far" I mean a couple of weeks of practice and workouts, and a rookie minicamp. Many, many things could go wrong this offseason. But if the Bucs reach the regular season with only one or two injured starters, they should be in good position to make a splash this season.