AP

Bills coach Doug Marrone wasn’t willing to disclose a timetable on Monday for wide receiver Sammy Watkins’s return from bruised ribs, but it wasn’t because he was keeping a tight lid on negative information about the first-round pick’s condition.

Chris Brown of the Bills website reports that Watkins was in pads and participating in practice on Tuesday, three days after he injured his ribs early in Saturday’s preseason tilt with the Steelers.

Brown reports that Watkins took part in individual drills with the rest of the receivers, but that he was moving at less than full speed while going through them. Watkins did not go on to run routes with the rest of the group against air.

While that’s far from full participation, the fact that everyone was comfortable enough with Watkins practicing so soon after the injury suggests that there’s not great concern about it moving into the future. Whether or not that means Watkins will be in the lineup against Tampa this weekend is unclear, but there’s no sign now that regular season time will be missed.