Bills Veteran Turns Heads With Surpise Surgery on Wednesday

During the first week of Buffalo Bills‘ training camp, a few fights broke out at St. John Fisher University.

Bills offensive tackle Alec Anderson got kicked out of practice following his scuffle with rookie edge rusher Hayden Harris. Head coach Sean McDermott made the call after Anderson punched Harris.

“I want to see nasty, physical football, but I don’t want to see disrespect for a man’s career and dirty football,” McDermott told reporters. “That’s not how we play in Buffalo. So, we painted a pretty clear picture this morning of what that looks like for the new players in particular.

“So that nastiness has to be developed here, but it can’t be at the expense of someone’s career. So clean, but physical.”

“Fights are going to happen. When you cheap shot someone, I have no respect for that. I thought that was a cheap shot, so I sent him to the locker room. And I communicated clearly to him from a following up standpoint of why I did that.

“I believe in Alec, I love him. He’s one of our tone setters, which I love. But there is a line there, especially against your own teammates.”

On Monday, July 28, a few days after the fight, Anderson left practice early due to knee soreness, Democrat & Chronicle’s Sal Maiorana reported. He did not practice on Tuesday. And on Wednesday, the veteran revealed he underwent surgery.

Alec Anderson’s Wife Shared a Post-Surgery Video Of the Bills Center With His Knee Wrapped

Alysha Anderson posted a video of her husband post-surgery on TikTok. The clip showed Anderson, who first joined the Bills as an undrafted free agent in 2022, with a wrap around his left leg.

While Anderson works out his arms with free weights, “Mind you, he just got knee surgery not even three hours ago,” Alysha wrote. One fan asked, “he got knee surgery?” Another person wrote,” Oh no! Prayers for a quick smooth recovery. Go Bills!💙❤️.” A Bills fan added, “How long is my guy out for??? We need this jumbo packages 😭😭.”

It’s unclear how long Anderson will be out. Banged Up Bills guessed, ” Looks like a cleanup, possible meniscus trim, could take a few weeks to get full go again.”

Alec Anderson Could Be in Like To Take Over As The Bills Starting Center

Anderson appeared in 17 games last season and made four starts. Filling in where needed, he played left tackle, center, left guard, and right guard — the kind of versatility McDermott loves.

While Anderson appears to be a lock for the 53-man roster, The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia believes he could be in a for a huge role in 2026 if McGovern leaves in free agency. However, he faces competition with 2024 fifth-rounder Sedrick Van Pran-Granger.

“While this battle won’t be at the top of everyone’s list, the battle between Anderson and Van Pran-Granger could have long-term implications,” Buscaglia wrote.

“Because the starting positions are spoken for in 2025, how Anderson and Van Pran-Granger perform in their center reps during camp practices and the preseason could determine who McGovern’s true backup is this season, and if they play well enough, maybe even the Bills’ starting center in 2026.”