Six storylines to watch in Bills first preseason game

Some say that the preseason is meaningless, and to a certain extent, it is. But, for Bills coaches (and diehard fans), it is important. The preseason games provide the opportunity to see intriguing position battles, see developing story lines in real time, and see new players for the first time.

There are several watching points for Bills fans this Saturday as the Buffalo Bills host the Chicago Bears in their first preseason game at 1pm EST:

Offensive Rapport
Sean McDermott announced on Thursday that the Bills first-team would play about a quarter on Saturday.

Josh Allen hasn’t typically gotten much playing time in past preseason games, but with the departure of Stefon Diggs, Gabe Davis and Mitch Morse, Saturday’s first quarter will be about Josh Allen feeling out his new receiving corps in real-time and getting comfortable with Connor McGovern at center. The Bills don’t want to see another slow start like year’s Week 1.

TE3 Battle
It’s no secret that Zach Davidson has had a strong training camp. However, incumbent TE3 Quintin Morris has too. Plus, Morris has two years of experience in the Bills offense and with Josh Allen. 

For Davidson to leapfrog Morris for the third tight end spot, he’ll need to show his superiority in gametime situations.

CB Daequan Hardy
Sixth-round draft pick Daequan Hardy’s stock has risen since the first day of training camp. 

Not only does Hardy have kick and punt returning ability, but he’s also making his case to be the backup nickel corner behind Taron Johnson. McDermott has had success grooming late-round CBs in recent years and Hardy appears to be another late-rounder to keep an eye on. A solid preseason could cement Daequan Hardy’s trust with the Bills coaching staff.

C Connor McGovern
With the departure of Mitch Morse this spring, the natural fit for the Bills starting center was always Connor McGovern, who has college and pro experience at center and excelled in the interior of the offensive line in 2023.

However, things haven’t been so easy for the McGovern-Josh Allen snap exchange thus far. 

Real-time rapport needs to be established between the two and hopefully they will have a clean day on Saturday.

Battles for WR5 and WR6
An interesting battle has been brewing at the tail end of the WR depth chart in training camp.

Unless the Bills make the rare move to carry seven wide receivers, there will be five receivers vying for two roster spots. With Justin Shorter and Chase Claypool likely out for Saturday’s game with injuries, Marquez Valdez-Scantling, Tyrell Shavers, and KJ Hamler could gain a leg up on the others. Curtis Samuel, Keon Coleman, Khalil Shakir and Mack Hollins appear to be locks to make the 53-man roster.

Tyler Bass
We’ve all wondered “what if?” after Tyler Bass missed the field goal in the fourth quarter of the Bills playoff loss in January. Reports out of training camp so far say that Bass has been consistent but having troubles from 50+ yards.

Tyler Bass will have some real-time opportunities Saturday, and the rest of the preseason, to “right the ship” before the regular season begins.