Coach Chan Gailey confirmed that WR Marcus Easley earned his promotion from the practice squad through steady improvement on the field.

"He's played extremely well on the scout team," coach Chan Gailey said. "He deserves an opportunity to come up and see what he might be able to do." We will monitor Easley over the next couple of weeks to see if he start eating into the snaps of T.J. Graham or Donald Jones.

Bills promoted WR Marcus Easley from their practice squad.

Disappointing rookie kickoff specialist John Potter was waived in a corresponding move. Although he has the requisite size/speed package to emerge as a deep threat, Easley's development has been stalled by injuries the past two seasons. He was a major disappointment in training camp this summer. Easley will add depth with Stevie Johnson nursing a deep thigh bruise this week.

Bills waived WR Marcus Easley and LB Tank Carder.

A fourth-round pick in 2010, Easley missed his entire rookie year with a knee injury, and all of 2011 with a heart condition. He never rose above the fourth-string during the preseason. A fifth-round pick, Carder is a surprising cut, but will presumably be stashed on the practice squad if he clears waivers.

Beat writer Mark Ludwiczak believes Marcus Easley needs "a major breakthrough performance to have any chance of sticking around."

Ludwiczak notes that Easley hasn't shown much "explosiveness" in his routes and "hasn't lived up to the hype" in training camp. Even if the Bills keep six receivers, Easley is behind Ruvell Martin and perhaps even Naaman Roosevelt in the battle for the final spot.

WGR 550 Buffalo's Joe Buscaglia believes WR Marcus Easley is in danger of getting cut by the Bills.

Easley was a fourth-teamer in Thursday night's preseason opener, which means he's buried on the depth chart in an offense that uses four- and five-receiver sets frequently. "He has not shown the consistency Chan Gailey has looked for," wrote Buscaglia, "and has been passed on the depth chart by both Derek Hagan and T.J. Graham." Easley may not even make it to final cuts.

Marcus Easley ran with the fourth-stringers during Thursday's preseason opener.

The Bills ran a lot of multiple-wideout sets and rotated heavily. Still, Easley appeared to be behind Stevie Johnson, Donald Jones, T.J. Graham, Derek Hagan, Ruvell Martin and David Clowney. David Nelson didn't even play.

Marcus Easley has been working in with the first-team offense early in Bills camp.

Although Donald Jones opened camp as the No. 2 receiver, Easley and Derek Hagan will get a chance to unseat him. Easley "stood out making some difficult acrobatic catches" in Sunday's practice. While Hagan's combination of experience and skills could lead to the most production opposite Stevie Johnson, Easley has the highest fantasy upside of the bunch.

BuffaloBills.com's Chris Brown feels that, among the team's unit of wide receivers, Marcus Easley has the best physical skill set for the outside receiver role.

The Bills are a bit crowded at wide receiver, but as Rotoworld's Mike Clay recently pointed out, they led the NFL in both three and four-wide sets last season. Easley saw some work with the first-team in minicamp and is competing with Derek Hagan, Donald Jones, and T.J. Graham for the starting gig opposite Steve Johnson. He should be on your list of deep sleepers.

Coach Chan Gailey indicated that WR Marcus Easley has shown no signs of limping of shortness of breath in his return from a 2011 heart ailment.

Outside of Stevie Johnson, Easley has the most physical ability of the Bills receivers. Gailey suggested, however, that the oft-injured 2010 fourth-rounder will have to "fight an uphill battle to get into the fray." Easley will likely begin training camp behind Donald Jones, David Nelson, and Derek Hagan on the depth chart.

Bills GM Buddy Nix reiterated the team is not planning to go after another free agent receiver this offseason.

Marcus Easley has been medically cleared for OTAs, while David Nelson and Donald Jones are set to return behind Steve Johnson. Easley offers upside as a potential speed complement to Johnson, but has yet to appear in an NFL game due to injuries in his first two season.

Bills GM Buddy Nix plans to acquire a big-play receiver even if free agent Stevie Johnson is re-signed.

The Bills are intrigued by what little they've seen of 2010 fourth-rounder Marcus Easley, but "we don't know what we've got," said Nix. "... He's a really big, strong, guy, he's 225 pounds who can run. He ran a 4.40. He can run after the catch, we haven't had that much." Easley's heart condition has been "completely solved," but Nix doesn't want to enter the 2012 season with just Easley, David Nelson, and Donald Jones behind Johnson.

Bills WR Marcus Easley has been medically cleared to resume football activities after missing the 2011 season with a heart condition.

Chan Gailey was asked Wednesday whether Easley will play football again. "That's up to him," said Buffalo's head coach. "We're going to give him every opportunity but that's up to him. Every player gets an opportunity. What they do with that opportunity is totally up to them." Easley was a fourth-round pick in 2010.

Marcus Easley answered that he wanted to "keep matters private and remain optimistic" when queried about the heart ailment that sent him to injured reserve in September.

"As far as I'm concerned I'm still on the team and I'm welcomed to attend meetings and work out if I'd like to," Easley said. "With the things that were going on, I really couldn't do too much but right now I'm just taking things day-by-day and hoping for the best." Easley remains without a timetable for a return to football activities.

Bills WR Marcus Easley, placed on injured reserve Tuesday, is reportedly suffering from a heart ailment.

The specifics are unknown, including whether it's a life-threatening issue. The ailment popped up on Easley suddenly late last week, forcing him from practice. Hopefully it's something he can manage while continuing to play football in 2012.

Bills placed WR Marcus Easley (illness) on injured reserve, ending his season.

Bills WR Marcus Easley (illness) needs "further evaluation" and will be unavailable for Week 2.

Worrisome news after Easley was a late addition to the Week 1 injury report. Buried on the depth chart behind Steve Johnson, David Nelson, Donald Jones and Roscoe Parrish, Easley is going to find targets hard to come by once he gets back on the field.

Bills declared WR Marcus Easley, LB Arthur Moats, CB Justin Rogers, OT Sam Young, OG Colin Brown, TE Lee Smith, NT Torell Troup inactive for Sunday's opener against the Chiefs.

Easley came down with an illness on Friday, and rapidly went from questionable to out. Roscoe Parrish and David Nelson will backup Steve Johnson and Donald Jones. Young was acquired from the Cowboys on Tuesday, and should be active as a reserve tackle as early as next week.

Marcus Easley (illness) is listed as questionable for Week 1.

The second-year wideout was a late addition to the injury report on Friday, but should be active on Sunday against the Chiefs. Although Easley is expected to be a contributor this season after missing all of 2010 with a left knee injury, it's highly doubtful he'll come into any fantasy value.

Starting opposite Steve Johnson, Marcus Easley hauled in five catches for 51 yards and a score in Saturday's preseason game.

Ryan Fitzpatrick found Easley for an 11-yard touchdown early in the second quarter. It was an excellent performance from a player who could find himself in the starting lineup in Week 1 if Donald Jones' "head" injury lingers. For the preseason, Easley has seven receptions for 96 yards.

Bills WR Marcus Easley (knee) returned to practice Wednesday night.

Easley missed just over a week after hyperextending his left knee. The Bills plan for Easley to make his preseason debut this weekend. If the rest of the receivers are healthy, Easley may be forced onto the practice squad this year. He's no higher than sixth on the depth chart right now.