Good Night / Bad Night - Pre-season Game 2

[GunnerBill]

First of all nobody should freak out. McDermott did say before the joint practice he would decide after it how to treat this game. By all accounts the Bills showed well in practice and as such they sat a ton of guys here. The Bears were playing a team, or a team and a half above the Bills all night.... but there were some things that could be taken from it..... even if my first reaction was "Wow... gotta find five "good nights" out of that!" Anyway, glad I only stayed up for the first quarter before going to sleep. Have watched the rest of the game this morning so here goes:

 

Good Night for...

 

Brad Robbins - Yes, it was that kinda night.... the first place by head goes is the punter played well! But just generally through the two pre-season games so far I have been impressed with Robbins. It is worth reminding yourself that he was actually drafted in 2023 by the Bengals but lost the job after one year. I wonder if he has benefitted from the year off because his leg looks plenty strong right now and there were two well judged shorter punts downed inside the 20 too. I'll add to it the coverage units have been pretty decent through two pre-season games when traditionally it is tougher to get that right with guys cycling through. 

 

Laviska Shenault - Three solid returns averaging 28 yards and he did look decisive on them. I don't think he is separating himself from Codrington yet (he had two for 27.5 average) and the competition still rages but the fact that Curtis Samuel can't get on the field and Elijah Moore can't catch a dump off means there is a potential gap there for a shifty, gimmick style receiver - something they might think Shenault can offer in addition to his returning. Not ready to say he is making the roster right now, but I have been pretty sniffy about his chances since he signed and my position is softening somewhat.

 

Tyrell Shavers - The reason Shenault needs one of Samuel or Moore to fall by the wayside is Shavers. He just continues to perform, is out there as a gunner on special teams, made a nice catch on a back shoulder throw from Mike White and looks like a guy who can run routes outside (as has been much discussed the Bills are overloaded with guys who prefer to play the slot). He is getting closer and closer to the 53. We have had guys like this feel like they have made it before under this regime only to end up on the cutting room floor but I think Shavers is trending towards making it. 

 

Frank Gore Jnr - Okay he had the fumble on a catch in the redzone that ended the Bills best drive in the 3rd quarter. But on a night where so many guys sucked and played at half speed Frank Gore went out there second half and played like it was the Superbowl. Ran hard, made himself available in the pass game and put his body on the line as a blocker. He ended with 81 of the Bills 180 offensive yards. He is kind of the perfect practice squad back in that he doesn't have special traits that are likely to get him poached but he is an absolute pro. If the Bills had a running back go down in year and had to call Gore up to the roster he would not let them down. 

 

Challenges - McDermott won a challenge! Hey, I was running out of positives..... 

 

 

Bad Night for...

 

Cole Bishop - Can't start anywhere else. He was the one likely starter that suited up for the Bills on defense, he played one drive and ended it giving up a touchdown after being lost and late in coverage again. Yes - he ended up on a slot receiver, tough matchup. But this wasn't a guy just out doing him athletically. He was in the wrong position, slow to read it and slow to react before the athleticism even became a factor. And this was not some super complex defensive call either, it looked like pretty vanilla single high with Bishop as the box safety (which is the role he is generally more comfortable in and played more in college). I'm really worried about his coverage struggles. It looks too much for him mentally to me.

 

Joe Andreessen - Possibly the first time since the train left the station last summer that someone has pumped the breaks but that was a rough half of football for Buffalo Joe. Again getting the start as the 2nd string MLB he struggled with Ben Johnson's play action calls - was not getting his depths right, was attacked in zone coverage and then made a mental mistake in man coverage too and dropped his guy. The suspicion has been there throughout that he is a bit more of an AJ Klein type who is a lot happier moving forwards than backwards but the Bears might be the first team to have really exposed it.

 

Mike White - I am not here to tell you Mitch Trubisky is good, but he is better than this. White's accuracy is a total lottery ticket. I will give him his props, I like how he stands in there and is willing to take a hit to get the ball off but he just misses too many throws. He didn't get a ton of help, I admit, but 4/11 for 54 yards with the 2nd string receivers and the best collection of offensive linemen the Bills had active was not a great statement in the backup QB battle.

 

Ryan Van Demark - It's been a good pre-season for Vandy to this point, he started camp splitting time with Tylan Grable at right tackle in Spencer Brown's absence and then has switched over to the left with Dion missing a couple of practices and he played well in pre-season game one. However, this was a poor outting. Two false starts on the first drive set the tone and it seemed to affect him because I thought he was chasing his blocks a bit after that and it affected his balance and technique.

 

Zach Davidson - This guy is toast. The drops last week, two bad penalties that wiped out chunk plays this week. It's over. 

 

 

Pick the bones out of that if you dare folks.... one more to go!

 

 

[oldmanfan]

Don’t know that I’d give thumbs up to anyone other than Shavers.  Agree with all your thumbs down but would add Hamlin,  our rookie DT Walker - he has to learn to play with his pads lower, and Codrington.  I think they want a returner that can also back up a position on the field and Codrington showed he’s not capable of playing corner.

 

All in all a lot of guys put their potential of playing in the NFL in jeopardy.

 

 

[GunnerBill]

5 minutes ago, oldmanfan said:

Don’t know that I’d give thumbs up to anyone other than Shavers.  Agree with all your thumbs down but would add Hamlin,  our rookie DT Walker - he has to learn to play with his pads lower, and Codrington.  I think they want a returner that can also back up a position on the field and Codrington showed he’s not capable of playing corner.

 

All in all a lot of guys put their potential of playing in the NFL in jeopardy.

 

 

 

Codrington is definitely a returner only.... but I'm not persuaded Shenault is more than that. I think I saw him get literally 2 snaps on offense. That's the interesting thing about that battle. 

 

[boyst]

I turned it off at a few points. Who missed the kick to start the second half? Or was I falling asleep dreaming that?

 

Our offense was woeful. Our defense didn't even show up.

 

The Bears offensive schemes were amazing and our backups had no idea how to react even when the powers were evenly matched. Good on Ben Johnson. I hope he can get Caleb Williams to clean his nails off and play real football with that team. 

[GunnerBill]

3 minutes ago, boyst said:

I turned it off at a few points. Who missed the kick to start the second half? Or was I falling asleep dreaming that?

 

Our offense was woeful. Our defense didn't even show up.

 

The Bears offensive schemes were amazing and our backups had no idea how to react even when the powers were evenly matched. Good on Ben Johnson. I hope he can get Caleb Williams to clean his nails off and play real football with that team. 

 

The kicker they signed... think he is also name Davis but not Ray.... 

 

Still no Bass.

[Chandler#81]

Very good summary GB. Thanks!

 

what was obvious to me was all the chatter this week after the scrimmage. Bills were great/Bears were great/Bills sucked/Bears were overmatched. Well, last night was pretty obvious which team studied the scrimmage tape vs played board games in their hotel rooms.

[dorquemada]

Bishop starting to look like a bust to me.  It wont stop McD from putting him out there but I have a feeling we’re going to regret that

[<bills4life>]

1 hour ago, GunnerBill said:

First of all nobody should freak out. McDermott did say before the joint practice he would decide after it how to treat this game. By all accounts the Bills showed well in practice and as such they sat a ton of guys here. The Bears were playing a team, or a team and a half above the Bills all night.... but there were some things that could be taken from it..... even if my first reaction was "Wow... gotta find five "good nights" out of that!" Anyway, glad I only stayed up for the first quarter before going to sleep. Have watched the rest of the game this morning so here goes:

 

Good Night for...

 

Brad Robbins - Yes, it was that kinda night.... the first place by head goes is the punter played well! But just generally through the two pre-season games so far I have been impressed with Robbins. It is worth reminding yourself that he was actually drafted in 2023 by the Bengals but lost the job after one year. I wonder if he has benefitted from the year off because his leg looks plenty strong right now and there were two well judged shorter punts downed inside the 20 too. I'll add to it the coverage units have been pretty decent through two pre-season games when traditionally it is tougher to get that right with guys cycling through. 

 

Laviska Shenault - Three solid returns averaging 28 yards and he did look decisive on them. I don't think he is separating himself from Codrington yet (he had two for 27.5 average) and the competition still rages but the fact that Curtis Samuel can't get on the field and Elijah Moore can't catch a dump off means there is a potential gap there for a shifty, gimmick style receiver - something they might think Shenault can offer in addition to his returning. Not ready to say he is making the roster right now, but I have been pretty sniffy about his chances since he signed and my position is softening somewhat.

 

Tyrell Shavers - The reason Shenault needs one of Samuel or Moore to fall by the wayside is Shavers. He just continues to perform, is out there as a gunner on special teams, made a nice catch on a back shoulder throw from Mike White and looks like a guy who can run routes outside (as has been much discussed the Bills are overloaded with guys who prefer to play the slot). He is getting closer and closer to the 53. We have had guys like this feel like they have made it before under this regime only to end up on the cutting room floor but I think Shavers is trending towards making it. 

 

Frank Gore Jnr - Okay he had the fumble on a catch in the redzone that ended the Bills best drive in the 3rd quarter. But on a night where so many guys sucked and played at half speed Frank Gore went out there second half and played like it was the Superbowl. Ran hard, made himself available in the pass game and put his body on the line as a blocker. He ended with 81 of the Bills 180 offensive yards. He is kind of the perfect practice squad back in that he doesn't have special traits that are likely to get him poached but he is an absolute pro. If the Bills had a running back go down in year and had to call Gore up to the roster he would not let them down. 

 

Challenges - McDermott won a challenge! Hey, I was running out of positives..... 

 

 

Bad Night for...

 

Cole Bishop - Can't start anywhere else. He was the one likely starter that suited up for the Bills on defense, he played one drive and ended it giving up a touchdown after being lost and late in coverage again. Yes - he ended up on a slot receiver, tough matchup. But this wasn't a guy just out doing him athletically. He was in the wrong position, slow to read it and slow to react before the athleticism even became a factor. And this was not some super complex defensive call either, it looked like pretty vanilla single high with Bishop as the box safety (which is the role he is generally more comfortable in and played more in college). I'm really worried about his coverage struggles. It looks too much for him mentally to me.

 

Joe Andreessen - Possibly the first time since the train left the station last summer that someone has pumped the breaks but that was a rough half of football for Buffalo Joe. Again getting the start as the 2nd string MLB he struggled with Ben Johnson's play action calls - was not getting his depths right, was attacked in zone coverage and then made a mental mistake in man coverage too and dropped his guy. The suspicion has been there throughout that he is a bit more of an AJ Klein type who is a lot happier moving forwards than backwards but the Bears might be the first team to have really exposed it.

 

Mike White - I am not here to tell you Mitch Trubisky is good, but he is better than this. White's accuracy is a total lottery ticket. I will give him his props, I like how he stands in there and is willing to take a hit to get the ball off but he just misses too many throws. He didn't get a ton of help, I admit, but 4/11 for 54 yards with the 2nd string receivers and the best collection of offensive linemen the Bills had active was not a great statement in the backup QB battle.

 

Ryan Van Demark - It's been a good pre-season for Vandy to this point, he started camp splitting time with Tylan Grable at right tackle in Spencer Brown's absence and then has switched over to the left with Dion missing a couple of practices and he played well in pre-season game one. However, this was a poor outting. Two false starts on the first drive set the tone and it seemed to affect him because I thought he was chasing his blocks a bit after that and it affected his balance and technique.

 

Zach Davidson - This guy is toast. The drops last week, two bad penalties that wiped out chunk plays this week. It's over. 

 

 

Pick the bones out of that if you dare folks.... one more to go!

 

 

I would add Hamlin, strong, and Codrington to that list of bad. 

Edited August 18 by <bills4life>

[Einstein]

They may cut Cole Bishop.

 

Which would be shockingly early but he sucks.

 

PS, I love how Ben Johnson plays offense. Even in the pre-season. So hard to defend, even with limited QB’s.

 

 

Edited August 18 by Einstein

[Juice_32]

1 hour ago, oldmanfan said:

Don’t know that I’d give thumbs up to anyone other than Shavers.  Agree with all your thumbs down but would add Hamlin,  our rookie DT Walker - he has to learn to play with his pads lower, and Codrington.  I think they want a returner that can also back up a position on the field and Codrington showed he’s not capable of playing corner.

 

All in all a lot of guys put their potential of playing in the NFL in jeopardy.

 

 

Walker was getting moved back like a man 150 lbs lighter. 

[wjag]

Codrington, the entire OLine and Buffalo Joe all had b r u t a l nights.  38-0 is a statement.  I’m just trying to figure out what it says.  

[D. L. Hot-Flamethrower]

I actually thought Jordan Hancock showed something last night. He still has some things to learn, but I'm not sure Bishop has ever looked as good as Hancock.

[DrBob806]

23 minutes ago, wjag said:

Codrington, the entire OLine and Buffalo Joe all had b r u t a l nights.  38-0 is a statement.  I’m just trying to figure out what it says.  

A statement of "oh sheesh the AFC East is ours"😬

[Lost]

I thought this teams defense made a significant dropoff after we canned Leslie Frazier but watching this team the last 2+ years since fundamentally and schematically they look pretty similar to what he ran.   

 

So the other real big chance has been the loss of Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer.   We've really been starting backups at safety ever since they left and it shows.   I gotta say I'm not too thrilled at the prospect of yet again using a 1st round draft pick next year on a safety and neglecting to get Josh Allen more weapons but it's pretty clear that's where this is leading.   

 

Last night's poor performance should be an indictment on Beane as much as any of the players that were on the field.   We've stacking a lot of draft picks that have had very little contribution to this team now.   

[Shortchaz]

Good night for:

 

Bears ticket sales 

 

Bad night for: 

 

Bills fans that watch preseason 

[zow2]

The draft picks looked terrible for the most part, or at best invisible. Maybe Hancock and Lundt deserve a golf clap.

 

It's tough to watch the Bills not get close to touching the other teams QB.  They don't make the QB uncomfortable at all.

 

At this point, I'd be a little nervous as Beane and might pick up the phone to inquire about Hendrickson or Parsons.  Ideally he could make a move for a proven safety.

 

The SB window is now.  If you have to mortgage the future a bit so be it. 

 

The offense is fine,,, Josh will make people like Ray Davis and Moore better than they look now.  He makes everyone look way better.

Edited August 18 by zow2

[GunnerBill]

43 minutes ago, &lt;bills4life&gt; said:

I would add Hamlin, strong, and Codrington to that list of bad. 

 

I only do five of each.... there was lots of competition for bad last night. 

[juno999]

33 minutes ago, Einstein said:

They may cut Cole Bishop.

 

Which would be shockingly early but he sucks.

 

PS, I love how Ben Johnson plays offense. Even in the pre-season. So hard to defend, even with limited QB’s.

 

 

Anything is possible but I highly doubt they cut him now. It would draw much more criticism by the fan base and as McD pointed out - they don’t know what they have with him. The Safety room is a real concern - Rapp has trouble staying healthy, Hamlin is a marginal player at best, apparently Forrest is terrible, and Cam Lewis is not ideal size. Starting to believe Beane makes a move in acquiring a safety around cut down day. Either a trade or sign a cut down guy. Heck, they may even bring back Poyer since he knows the system. 

[GunnerBill]

5 minutes ago, zow2 said:

The draft picks looked terrible for the most part, or at best invisible. Maybe Hancock and Lundt deserve a golf clap.

 

It's tough to watch the Bills not get close to touching the other teams QB.  They don't make the QB uncomfortable at all.

 

At this point, I'd be a little nervous as Beane and might pick up the phone to inquire about Hendrickson or Parsons.  Ideally he could make a move for a proven safety.

 

The SB window is now.  If you have to mortgage the future a bit so be it. 

 

The offense is fine,,, Josh will make people like Ray Davis and Moore better than they look now.  He makes everyone look way better.

 

Lundt was okay. Not as good as last week, had a couple of shaky pass pro reps when inside at LG - one of which led to sack of Mike White (but after he held the ball for freaking ever). Interesting that they looked at Lundt at guard. He was there with the "starting" unit then stayed out there and played RT with the second line through. Hancock had a couple of nice reps and a couple of really poor ones. Which is sorta par for the course right now for a 5th round rook. 

[juno999]

43 minutes ago, wjag said:

Codrington, the entire OLine and Buffalo Joe all had b r u t a l nights.  38-0 is a statement.  I’m just trying to figure out what it says.  

Last year, the Bears crushed the Bills in preseason. The Bears ended up firing their coach and sucked. The Bills won the division, Allen got MVP, and they lost to the Chiefs in the playoffs again. Last night says nothing.