AP

The Bills are in their first week of OTAs for the offseason, but wide receiver Stevie Johnson hasn’t been able to join his teammates on the field.

Johnson was diagnosed with a strained back early in the team’s offseason workouts, an injury that didn’t seem like a major concern when it first came to light. It’s more than a month later, though, and Johnson still hasn’t gotten cleared to resume a full workload. Johnson said he’s getting better, but admitted that he doesn’t know when doctors will sign off on his return to the field.

“I don’t know, it’s just a timing thing,” Johnson said, via the Bills website. “I’m just doing everything that they’re telling me to. I’m doing the weight room stuff. Of course I’m inside the playbook and when they give me the green light I’ll be ready to go.”

It’s May, so there’s no reason to think the Bills are doing anything other than acting out of an abundance with caution in regard to their best receiver. The more time Johnson would have with the new offense and the new quarterbacks the better, but it won’t be time to worry about an absence from the practice field for a few months yet.