ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- From practice squad to NFL starter: Quarterback Thad Lewis received the surprising news of his sudden promotion upon arriving at the Buffalo Bills facility for team meetings Monday. Shortly before 8 a.m., coach Doug Marrone pulled Lewis aside to inform him to get ready to face the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. "He just told me, Youre starting," Lewis told The Associated Press. "He gave me the nod, so I have to go out and do my best with it." A day after working out free agents Pat White and Dennis Dixon, and losing out to Minnesota in a bid to sign recently cut Tampa Bay starter Josh Freeman, the Bills (2-3) stayed in-house in finding an interim replacement for injured rookie starter EJ Manuel. "We thought it was best for us to move on and play with Thaddeus," Marrone said. "With Thad, he knows the whole system inside out, so at least we can give him the things that we feel hes strong with, which gives us a better chance." The scramble to find a starter began after Manuel sprained his right knee in a 37-24 loss to Cleveland on Thursday. The injury will not require surgery, but Manuel is expected to miss a few weeks, and potentially longer. The Bills had only one other quarterback on their roster, undrafted rookie Jeff Tuel, who struggled in replacing Manuel on Thursday. Tuel completed 8 of 20 passes for 80 yards and an interception that was returned for a touchdown. Lewis promotion came as a surprise after Marrone indicated last week that the team intended to look outside the organization for a replacement. Those plans changed Sunday night, once Freeman announced he was signing with Minnesota. Lewis has spent the past six weeks with the Bills. He was acquired in a trade with Detroit in late August, after Manuel was sidelined with a left knee injury and veteran Kevin Kolb sustained a concussion. Marrone acknowledged the Bills are in a tough spot at quarterback. "Its difficult when you get down to your third or fourth quarterback," Marrone said. And he defended the decision to open the season without a veteran quarterback by noting the Bills had to commit roster spots to address injuries at defensive back and with rookie kicker Dustin Hopkins sidelined by a groin injury. In promoting Lewis, the Bills placed Hopkins on season-ending injured reserve. "Now, if you wouldve said to me, Hey, youre going to have two injuries (at quarterback), should you have done something different? Absolutely," Marrone said. "But that really wasnt the plan going in." Lewis played college at Duke and split most of the past three seasons on the St. Louis Rams and Browns practice squads. He has played one game, a start in Clevelands season finale against Pittsburgh last year, when he went 22 of 32 for 204 yards passing with a touchdown and interception. Calling his excitement level as being "through the roof," Lewis is attempting to keep his emotions in check. "A lot of people are like, Why arent you happy and jumping for joy?" Lewis said. "But I know its a business. And I know I have to get ready to help this team go out and win." Lewis appeared in the Bills preseason finale, going 7 of 16 for 132 yards and a touchdown in a 35-13 loss to Detroit. The Bills thought enough of his performance to sign him to the practice squad and cut fellow newcomer Matt Leinart. "I just have to go out and put my best foot forward," Lewis said. "Dont do too much because youve got playmakers around you. But do enough to put us in a good position to get this W." Marrone said it was still too early to establish a timetable on Manuels recovery. He was able to provide more encouraging updates on the status of other injured players. Starting safety Jairus Byrd is expected to play Sunday after missing the first five games with plantar fasciitis in both feet. Starting cornerback Stephon Gilmore (broken left hand) and backup Ron Brooks (broken right foot) are scheduled to practice this week. Marrone listed receiver Stevie Johnson as day to day after the starter hurt his back against Cleveland. ---- NOTES: Marrone said the starting left guard is up for grabs now that Doug Legursky has returned from a left knee injury. Legursky will compete with Colin Brown. ... The Bills claimed OG Antoine McClain of waivers, two days after he was released by Oakland, and released backup OG Sam Young. ... Punter Brian Moorman, who re-signed with Buffalo on Sunday, has his old No. 8 back. Tuel gave up the number and will no wear No. 7. Soccer Jerseys Online . The Philadelphia left fielder clubbed a tiebreaking, solo home run in the seventh inning, and the Phillies edged the Red Sox, 2-1, in the middle test of a three-game interleague series at Citizens Bank Park. 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H suited up in all 82 regular season games for the Avs. This marks the third time in the past five years that an Avalanche player has been named a Calder finalist, with Gabriel Landeskog having won the award in 2012 and Matt Duchene having finished third in 2010. Palat finiished second in rookie scoring with 59 points in 81 games and finished one goal behind the goal-scoring lead amongst freshmen with 23.dddddddddddd Johnson tied MacKinnon for the goal-scoring lead while also playing a full 82-game schedule. His 50 points were good for third amongst NHL rookies. This marks the first time two teammates have been among the Calder finalists since the Blackhawks Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews both finished top-three in 2008. Palat and Johnson are the Lightnings first Calder finalists since Brad Richards finished second in voting in 2001. ' ' '