The preseason is over for the Buffalo Bills and the next time they will play football, it will mean something more than it has in the last three games. It wasn’t exactly the most fun preseason as the Bills struggled more than they had success, but they finished on a much stronger note heading into Week 1.
Sean McDermott and Brandon Beane will now be tasked to figure out who will be joining the final 53-man roster, and who will be released from the team. This is one the toughest parts of the job because there are a good amount of solid players, but you can’t keep everyone.
With that being said, there were some winners and losers from the Bills preseason overall as the regular season approaches.
4 winners (and 4 losers) from Bills preseason
Winners:
WR Tyrell Shavers
If Tyrell Shavers does not get a roster spot for the Bills, there will be a lot of surprised fans. Shavers has done more than enough to earn the last wide receiver spot on the roster, and his fantastic one-handed touchdown grab against the Buccaneers should be the cherry on top to him getting a roster spot.
Throughout the preseason, Shavers has been physical in blocking and he has been a reliable target while also creating separation.
RB Frank Gore Jr.
The Bills have their top three backs in James Cook, Ray Davis, and Ty Johnson. There is no room for Frank Gore Jr. to make the roster, but his performance throughout the preseason may have earned him a roster spot somewhere else. It will be very shocking if another team doesn’t pick him up prior to the start of the season.
DT Deone Walker
The Bills’ fourth round pick from this past draft shined big time in the preseason. Whether he was stopping the run or creating pressure up the middle, Deone Walker is ready to make an impact sooner than later for the Bills this season. He could easily become a draft steal for the Bills if he can stay healthy.
CB/S Jordan Hancock
In the first two preseason games, Buffalo’s rookie defensive back out of Ohio State showed his toughness against the run and quite frankly, he could become a starter early on in the season due to the Bills’ secondary taking some hits at injuries.
Losers:
Bills' CB room
Buffalo’s secondary is going to be tested big time early on. With Max Hairston and Tre’Davious White dealing with injuries, and potentially not being ready for the start of the season, the Bills will have to figure out who to play opposite of Christian Benford.
QB Mike White
The QB2 competition for the Bills was real at one point, but Mike White really lost it against the Chicago Bears when he couldn’t lead the offense to do anything correct. Mitch Trubisky should be the backup to Josh Allen, which would be his third season doing so. Maybe White still finds a way to make the roster, but the Bills usually only carry two quarterbacks.
S Darrick Forrest
The safety room for the Bills has been questioned for awhile now, and this was the perfect time for someone like Darrick Forrest to step up and become a contributor. Instead, he was very quiet throughout the summer and the preseason. He didn’t make any noise and he will more than likely be searching for a new team.
WR Elijah Moore
In fairness to Moore, he didn’t have the chance to catch passes from Josh Allen throughout the preseason. He was brought to Buffalo to help open up the offense and we know what has done in his first four seasons with bad quarterback play. Unfortunately, he was very quiet in the preseason despite there being excitement about him when he was signed.