In the first preseason game of the season, the Buffalo Bills kept all their starters out for the game against the Indianapolis Colts and this gave players further down the depth chart more snaps. This included all six of the Bills’ draft picks from the 2022 NFL Draft.
Even though this was their first NFL action, they all made an impact and notable contributions in helping Buffalo come away with a win. This is a recap of how each rookie played in the first preseason game.
Rookie report for the Buffalo Bills after the first preseason game
Kaiir Elam
Kaiir Elam was the Bills first round pick and would be one of the starting cornerbacks in this game. This was a good test for Elam because the Colts elected to have their starting offense play early in the game.
Elam would play 32 snaps which were 52% of the defensive snaps and may have played more if not for the fact that he suffered a head injury in the second quarter. He was cleared to return but the coaching staff probably saw enough and didn’t want to risk any further injury so his day was done.
For the most part, Elam’s first game was positive as he had two total tackles and one pass breakup on the Colts’ opening drive with the only negative was he was called for a pass interference penalty in the second quarter.
The Buffalo Bills may not know who will start if Tre’Davious White is not able to play Week 1 but Kaiir Elam certainly should be an option.