Bills' Spencer Brown "took enough drugs to sedate a small elephant" to play with back injury

Published October 30, 2026 11:54 AM Bills right tackle Spencer Brown says he needed to be heavily medicated to play in Week 6 against the Raiders after suffering a back injury in Week 5 against the Rams.Asked about his presence on the injury report, Brown says it stemmed from his back but wouldn’t keep him off the field.“Just lingering stuff from what’s happened to me the last couple weeks here. And what happened in that LA game just kind of got nicked up and then I took enough drugs to sedate a small elephant when I was in LA,” Brown said.Reporters chuckled at that description, but Brown said it’s just a part of life for an NFL player.“Everybody’s laughing. It’s protocol. NFL signed off on it, so it’s OK,” Brown said. “But yeah, just took care of the body the best way I knew how and got through the Vegas game and played pretty well and got on the bye week and kind of bit me in the butt a little bit. So, just taking it easy and smart.” Brown said if he’s physically capable of getting on the field, he’ll always play and make no excuses.“I do pride myself on being ready every single day,” Brown said. “When I’m out there, I’m out there. There’s not going to be any, ‘He’s nicked up, he’s got this going on, that’s why he’s not playing very well.’ That’s not me at all. If I’m out there in between the lines, I’m good enough to go.”No one can question Brown’s toughness, but it’s fair to question whether it’s a good idea for the NFL to allow players to play when they’re injured badly enough that they need that kind of medication. The league is facing renewed scrutiny in recent weeks for issues including Jalen Hurts’ blood clot and Christian Watson returning to Thursday night’s game after going to the hospital with a broken rib. Perhaps players on enough drugs to sedate a small elephant should be given the day off.