Last week, the Buffalo Bills extended their preseason winning streak to nine games. While that doesn’t mean much in the grand scheme of things, it’s a nice boost of confidence for the younger players on the team as they head into a season with sky high expectations. In game two of the preseason, the Bills will face another potential playoff team when they take on Russell Wilson and the Denver Broncos.
How to Watch:
- Date: Saturday, Aug. 20
- Time: 1:00 p.m. ET
- Location: Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, NY
- TV: NFL Network
As we start to get closer to the regular season, the snap counts and lineups in preseason games will begin to get even more important. We’ll start to see who the coaches trust and which pairings they feel give the team the best chance to win. Below is our guide to the five keys to watch for on Saturday if you’re looking to sort the news from the noise.
How Much Will the Starters Play?
On Thursday, Sean McDermott announced that the Buffalo Bills starters will play “a healthy amount” on Saturday. It was an announcement that raised a few highbrows since Josh Allen only played a handful of snaps last preseason, and the expectation was that the Bills would take the same path this year to limit any chance of injury.
A big reason for the decision to have most of the starters suit up is likely that this is the first year for new offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey. “Josh will be hearing a new voice (OC Ken Dorsey) in his ear as well,” said Coach McDermott, “so there’s a lot we want to put into practice in a game that we’ve been practicing.”
The real question will be how much the starters will play. While Bills fans are likely excited about seeing their studs take the field, they also would be devastated if any were to suffer an injury. If Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills offense looks good in the first couple of drives under Dorsey’s direction, maybe that will be enough for McDermott to decide to sit them on the bench for the rest of the preseason.
Can Isaiah Hodgins Continue Pushing for a Roster Spot?
When the starters come out of the game, it will be a chance for the guys on the fringe of the roster to continue their push to earn a roster spot. Earlier this week, we covered how Isaiah Hodgins’ performance last weekend started to open some eyes to the possibility that the third-year pro could force his way onto the final roster. In fact, in my 53-man roster projection, I had Hodgins making the team over veteran Jake Kumerow.
In order for that to happen, Hodgins will not only need to shine in the receiving game but will need to continue to show that he can be an asset on special teams since that is where Kumerow provides most of his value to the Buffalo Bills.
Can Case Keenum Bounce Back?
Case Keenum was not good last weekend. The Buffalo Bills’ backup quarterback was 11-18 for 86 yards and two interceptions. While we don’t need to put too much weight into that given the fact that it was the first preseason game and Keenum will, hopefully, rarely see the field this year, a team with Super Bowl aspirations needs a strong backup quarterback. You never know what will happen during the season, and you don’t want one injury to derail all your hopes, if you can avoid it.
Keenum has a long history as a solid backup, and that shouldn’t be pushed aside after one bad game, but Matt Barkley is also not going to go away, so Keenum will need to rebound in order to assuage any concerns that he might not be the right man to work alongside Josh Allen during the 2022 season.
Can Baylon Spector Repeat his Week 1 Performance?
Isaiah Hodgins wasn’t the only player on the fringe of the roster who impressed last week. Spector, the Bills’ seventh-round pick this year, was expected to be a practice squad player before coming out and leading the team with 10 tackles last weekend. He also had one pass breakup and showed the impressive sideline-to-sideline speed that had him flashing all over the field.
One performance isn’t going to lock Spector onto the final roster, especially since the Buffalo Bills have a locked-in set of linebackers; however, if Spector, like Hodgins, can prove his value on special teams and can continue to flash enough skill to make plays if forced into game action, then he may force their hand. If the Bills may worry that they won’t be able to sneak him through waivers and onto the practice squad, then they’d have to keep him on the roster or risk losing him to another team.
We’re a couple of weeks away from that being a decision, but Spector can continue to make it a reality with another strong performance on Saturday.
What Performance Will We Get From the Young Defensive Ends?
Last week, we saw AJ Epenesa continue his strong offseason by flashing solid edge contain in his limited snaps against the Colts. We also saw Boogie Basham come up with a big strip sack that led to a Buffalo Bills defensive touchdown. Since the Bills like to rotate their defensive line snaps, those two young players need to continue to develop if Buffalo hopes to make a deep run in the playoffs.
However, it’s not just the rotational lineman that we’ll be watching on Saturday. Presumed starter Greg Rousseau will also be crucial to the Bills’ success this year. With offenses likely game planning to stop Von Miller, Rousseau should see plenty of one-on-one opportunities throughout the year. With the massive second-year defensive end likely to see snaps on Saturday, we’ll be able to see just how impactful the offseason work with Miller and Buffalo Bills legend Bruce Smith has been on Rousseau’s pass-rushing skillset.
If he can signal himself as a true sack threat opposite Miller, the Bills’ defense could be a real problem for opponents during the season.
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