Buffalo's defense took a difficult blow Monday when head coach **** Jauron revealed that weak side linebacker Angelo Crowell is out indefinitely."Angelo will probably miss the rest of the year with a fracture in the lower leg," said Jauron. "It's tough for him and tough for us. He was playing well and getting more and more comfortable in the scheme. I'm very disappointed about it."Crowell was injured when he was kicked by another player, and left the game during the first defensive series for Buffalo. He came off during a television commercial break and didn't return. The Bills weak side linebacker is an important cog in the defense. He was the team's second leading tackler, tied for the team lead in interceptions and tied for third on the team in pass breakups.The Bills defense already lost rookie defensive tackle John McCargo for the season with a broken foot in Week Five. But Jauron is not complaining knowing injuries are part of the game."It gives somebody else an opportunity to step up and have a chance to show us what they can do," he said.Buffalo does have options to fill the void. The past three weeks Coy Wire has been practicing at the open side position when Keith Ellison was nursing a painful bone bruise on his knee. Last Sunday Wire replaced Crowell in the lineup and performed admirably according to Jauron."Moving him back to linebacker when Keith was out proves to benefit us in the long term," said Jauron. "He's taken to it right away. It was a position he played in college. He's a very bright and disciplined guy. He played pretty well yesterday. He played a good game."Jauron would not go so far to say that Wire will be the full time replacement for Crowell."We'll look at it as the week goes on," he said. "We really like what Keith (Ellison) has done, and he's healthy now so we'll just work them both and see what happens."Crowell, who was also one of the team's nickel linebackers leaves a void on passing downs as well. Takeo Spikes filled Crowell's nickel role this past Sunday, but Jauron and his staff will consider other options as well."He'll definitely get work in there," said Jauron of Spikes playing one of the nickel linebacker positions. "Keith (Ellison) has taken a lot of reps in there and we could work Coy in there underneath. So we've got some guys that are ready to go at that position. Takeo's a candidate. He played in there on game day. He likes it and he wants to be in there."Wire is confident his past four seasons at safety would serve him well in a nickel linebacker role on passing downs if given the opportunity."Being in a passing situation is an afterthought," he said. "That's second nature to me now. The time I've spent at safety will only help me if I'm asked to play linebacker in the nickel."
