Bills Blast: Last chance for back end roster players to make an impression

Every data point matters to Sean McDermott, which is why he’ll be using the final preseason game Friday night in Carolina to not only appraise players in the running to make the back end of the 53-man roster, but also, those he may want to bring back, if possible, to the practice squad.

And the piece of advice he gave during a team meeting earlier in the week, aimed at the players battling to make the team, was a simple one:

“Just go for it,” McDermott said. “You’ve already played a play in the NFL, which is a lot of people’s dreams - you’ve accomplished that and they haven’t. It’s easy to kind of count numbers this time of year and think, ‘Hey the script has already been written,’ when really all it takes is one team. And why not just go for it and keep pushing?”

Meaning, if you don’t make the Bills roster, the other 31 teams will watch the film against the Panthers and the first two preseason games, and all it takes is one to see something it might like that warrants a job offer.

“I was in that spot at one time,” said backup linebacker Tyrel Dodson, a former undrafted free agent who is now in his fourth season with the Bills. “You got to maximize your opportunity. I talked to a lot of undrafted guys, and I think every undrafted guy can play somewhere. So, I’m excited to see all those guys ball out.”

Here’s a six-pack of things I’ll be watching Friday night:

1. Tight end usage: This has come as such a surprising development because of the lackluster showing from O.J. Howard. I sound like a broken record - do young people even know what that means in the digital music world? - but Howard hasn’t shown me a thing. He plays no special teams so he has one job, playing tight end, and he hasn’t been very good. It will sting monetarily if the Bills cut him, but if he’s playing into the second half in this game, that means the Bills are trying to get him on tape enough to perhaps find a team willing to make a trade. And if that happens, it means Quintin Morris and Tommy Sweeney would be the likely backups to Dawson Knox.

2. Is offensive lineman Bobby Hart for real? He was originally a seventh-round pick by the Giants in 2015 and he played three years there, then three more in Cincinnati, starting a combined 66 games. He joined the Bills in 2021, but he was absolutely awful so they cut him and he joined the Titans where he got into three games, one as a starter. They cut him, too, and he came back to Buffalo late last year, then re-signed shortly before the draft and this figured to be his last chance. Well, under the tutelage of new line coach Aaron Kromer, Hart has been one of the surprises of camp and now he stands a good chance of making the team as a backup guard. When asked how much Hart had improved, McDermott said, “Immensely.”

3. The rookie cornerback competition: Forget Tre’Davious White for the opener, and possibly the first four or so games. I just don’t see him getting back on the field. So, with Dane Jackson locked in on one side, first-round pick Kaiir Elam and sixth-round pick Christian Benford are fighting it out for the other starting job and right now, it seems like a dead heat. This game could prove to be the determining factor.

4. Can Baylon Spector keep impressing?: At the start of camp I gave the rookie seventh-round pick almost no chance to make the final roster, but he has looked good - albeit against second- and third-stringers - in the first two preseason games. Further, he has been heavily involved in special teams. It will come down to numbers because I can’t see the Bills keeping more than five linebackers and the frontrunners are Tremaine Edmunds, Matt Milano, Terrel Bernard, Tyrel Dodson and special teams player Tyler Matakevich. Could Spector push either Matakevich (unlikely) or Dodson (possible) off the team? If he’s cut, he might be tough to get back on the practice squad.

5. Edge rusher rotation: Von Miller and Greg Rousseau are the undeniable starters, but I’m wondering what the batting order is between A.J. Epenesa, Boogie Basham and Shaq Lawson? The Bills really need Epenesa to play like the second-round pick he was in 2020, and he has shown improvement this summer. Basham is another second-round pick (2021) who needs to step up, and Lawson is back for a second go-round with the Bills, and I’m not entirely certain that he’s a lock to make the roster (though I think he will).

6. Can Jake Kumerow save his roster spot?: Kumerow is listed as a receiver, but he rarely plays on offense. He's one of the coveted four-core special teamers along with, among others, Matakevich, Siran Neal, and Taiwan Jones. But in camp and in the first two games, third-year man Isaiah Hodgins has made an impression on offense, and he's also been getting worked into special teams. It's quite possible that he could grab the sixth and final receiver spot away from Kumerow if he can play well on special teams.

Here’s where you can watch and/or listen to the game

Date: Friday, Aug. 26 at 7 p.m.

Place: Bank of America Stadium

TV Announcers: Andrew Catalon (play-by-play), Steve Tasker (analyst), Cynthia Frelund (sideline reporter).

TV channels: The game will not be aired nationally and will only be available locally via the following stations: WROC (Channel 8, Rochester), WIVB (Buffalo), WSYR (Syracuse), WPNY (Utica), WETM (Elmira), WXXA (Albany), WWTI (Watertown), WIVT (Binghamton), WJET (Erie, Pennsylvania).

Online live stream: The game can be streamed on NFL.com, the NFL mobile app and the NFL's new streaming service, NFL+. The new NFL+ replaces NFL Game Pass and you can stream every NFL preseason game. You can also stream on fuboTV, YouTube TV, and Hulu with a paid subscription.

Radio announcers: John Murphy (play-by-play), Eric Wood (analyst), Sal Capaccio (sideline reporter).

How to listen: Bills Radio Network in Rochester (WCMF 96.5 and WROC 950 AM), Buffalo (WGR550, 550 AM), Syracuse (WTKW 99.5 and WTKV (105.5), Ithaca (WIII 99.9/100.3 FM), Bath (WVIN 98.3 FM), Newark (WACK 1420 AM), Dansville (WDNY 93.9 FM), Elmira (WNGZ 1490 AM), Auburn (WAUB 98.1 FM/1590 AM), and Geneva (WGVA 95.9 FM, 1240 AM).

What they’re saying in the locker room

▶ CB Taron Johnson on the difference between covering Cole Beasley, Isaiah McKenzie and Jamison Crowder: “I would say Cole is definitely more shifty, but Isaiah is faster. So, just having that mix up, and even with Crowder out there, too, it’s just helping me get on my game better, and I feel like it’s going to prepare me well for the season. (Crowder) brings kind of like that same style that Cole has. Isaiah is more that speedster guy, so it’s always tough with that.”

▶ WR Isaiah Hodgins on where he has improved the most this season: “I’ll really just say my physicality and playing to my size. The coaches kind of told me that going into OTA’s and they wanted me to play more physical on the perimeter and that includes blocking. Not only that but just really when there’s a ball and it’s a contested catch in the air, that it’s my ball. Or it’s across the middle and I come down with those tough grabs. I’ve really been trying to focus on extending my hands for catches and make contested catches.”

▶ GM Brandon Beane on trading Cody Ford: “When you draft a player, we want to draft, develop, re-sign him. So from that standpoint, that’s disappointing for me. And I’ve got to go back and look at our process, where that didn’t work out. In my heart of hearts, I wanted Cody to come in here and have his best year into his fourth year and make a decision to whether we were going to re-sign him or not. And as we pare this down, it just ultimately made the most sense for the Bills and for Cody. (The Cardinals) made an aggressive enough move that I thought it made sense to at this point to add a draft pick that hopefully we do a good job with next April.”

Getting to know … WR Khalil Shakir

During the lead up to the 2022 NFL Draft, the standout from Boise State obviously had no idea where he would end up, but based on his interaction with teams, two places were a distinct possibility.

After an impressive showing at the NFL Scouting Combine where he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.43 seconds - faster than some expected, and tied for 12th-fastest at the position - Shakir participated in Boise State’s pro day. The only wide receiver coach in the NFL who was present was Chris Jackson of the Jacksonville Jaguars, and he spent time with Shakir after the workout.

The Bills were not at the pro day, but they didn’t need to be because it was clear, through their own scouting, film study and what they saw at the Combine, that Shakir was someone they were interested in. And they followed through by picking him in the fifth round.

“I talked to the Bills a lot throughout the pre-draft process,” Shakir said. “They were one of the first teams that I talked to within Zoom meetings and all that. Kind of doing those pre-draft interviews, and in the back of my head I just couldn’t stop thinking about the talks that I had with the Bills. So, I guess it was a match made in heaven.”

And so far, the early returns - and let me emphasize very early returns - are that it might indeed be a match made in heaven because Shakir looks like a superb fit in the Buffalo offense.

Primarily a slot receiver for Boise State, Shakir has been given chances on the outside in certain formations for the Bills, and he has proven that he can handle it. I point to one play last week in the victory over Denver.

Shakir was lined up wide right late in the second quarter on a third-and-15 play, and at the snap, the Broncos jumped offside so the Bills had a free play. Shakir made a quick move a couple yards off the line, then beat his man down the sideline and hauled in a 25-yard pass from Case Keenum which set up Buffalo’s fourth touchdown.

Shakir has been making plays like this going back to OTAs, and at training camp, with the competition intensified and the Bills’ defense making things challenging, he has consistently shown an ability to get open and catch the ball.

“He’s smart, he’s got a really good head on his shoulders just in terms of it doesn’t seem like any job is too small, and yet no job is too big at this point,” McDermott said. “And that’s not an easy challenge where he can play inside, play outside, especially for a first-year player in this system. And he’s handled it well to this point.”

Here are a few things to know about Shakir:

• He was a military kid: His father served 24 years in the Marines and Khalil, who was born in Virginia, also lived in places like Hawaii, California and Japan.

• Favorite musician: Rod Wave.

• Favorite ice cream: Coffee.

• Pre-game ritual: Eat a lot of candy, something I’m sure the Bills’ strength and conditioning department does not approve.

• Unique talent: Bowling.

• Dream vacation spot: American Samoa.

• Favorite moving: Saving Private Ryan, an outstanding choice if I do say so myself.

• Favorite TV show: Snowfall, which also happens to be one that I readily approve.

• Favorite athlete growing up: Wide receiver Julio Jones.

Buffalo Bills birthday bio: Cornelius Bennett

On Halloween night 1987, while the kids were out scavenging for candy, Bill Polian was hunkered down in his office at One Bills Drive trying to hammer out the details on the biggest trade in team history, and one of the biggest in NFL history.

And the man at the center of what became a three-team mega deal was Bennett, who turns 57 on Thursday.

The Colts had picked Bennett with the second overall choice in the 1987 draft, but they had been unable to sign him and six weeks into the season, it was clear it wasn’t going to happen. Polian knew exactly what Bennett - a supreme edge-rushing outside linebacker - would mean for a defense that was already well into a rebuild with edge rusher Bruce Smith, linebackers Shane Conlan and Daryl Talley, and defensive backs Nate Odomes, Derrick Burroughs and Mark Kelso entrenched.

“We felt that trade gave us an opportunity to be a really good defense,” said Polian. “Cornelius allowed Shane and Bruce to operate at their maximum efficiency. And it allowed Cornelius to flourish as well. It didn’t just impact one player, it impacted three.”

The cost was heavy. Polian shipped running back Greg Bell and Buffalo’s first-round draft choice in 1988 plus its first- and second-round picks in 1989 to the Colts for Bennett. The Colts then sent the entire Bills package, plus three more high draft choices, to the Rams in exchange for superstar running back Eric Dickerson.

Yeah, they don’t pull off trades like that anymore in the NFL.

“He told me the day that he signed that we were going to become winners,” said Polian. “He kept his word.”

The Bills, coming off three seasons where they’d won just eight of 48 games, went 7-8 in 1987, then went on to win six of the next eight AFC East division titles and four consecutive AFC championships, and Bennett was part of it all.

He later signed with the Falcons as a free agent in 1996 and went to a Super Bowl where he lost for a fifth time after the 1998 season, and ironically, he signed with the Colts in 1999 and played the last of his 14 NFL seasons in Indianapolis.

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This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Bills Blast: Last chance for back end roster players to make an impression