CHARLOTTE – Though it was far from the most important thing involving the Bills on Friday, there was a football game to be played.
Not a single projected starter for the Buffalo Bills suited up against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium in the preseason finale for both teams, but that made for plenty of opportunities for the players battling to earn one of the final spots on the 53-man roster, which must be set by 4 p.m. Tuesday.
The Bills’ 10-game preseason winning streak came to an end, as Panthers quarterback Baker Mayfield led a pair of touchdown drives in the first half playing behind Carolina’s projected starting offensive line on the way to a 21-0 win for the home team in front of an announced crowd of 75,542. Buffalo’s 10-game winning streak was the second-longest in the exhibition season, trailing only Baltimore’s incomprehensible streak of 22 straight games.
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For the Bills, it was more noteworthy who did play against the Panthers as opposed to who did not.
That list starts with second-year right tackle Spencer Brown, who remains listed with the second team behind veteran David Quessenberry. Brown’s practice time has been limited this summer as he has been slow to recover from offseason back surgery, so it’s not a huge surprise Bills coach Sean McDermott elected to get him some more snaps against Carolina. Whether Brown will vault in front of Quessenberry and back into the starting lineup for the Sept. 8 season opener against the Los Angeles Rams remains a big question.
On defense, the Bills held out edge rushers Von Miller and Greg Rousseau, as expected. It was telling, however, that third-year veteran A.J. Epenesa also did not play. That establishes him as a clear No. 3 on the positional depth chart, ahead of Boogie Basham and Shaq Lawson, both of whom started against Carolina.
The Bills also did not play third-year cornerback Dane Jackson, choosing instead to start rookies Christian Benford and Kaiir Elam outside. Elam responded with a nice pass defensed on a third-down play on Carolina’s first drive of the game, setting up a Panthers punt.
Here are some other on-the-field observations from the Bills’ preseason finale:
2. Pre-snap penalties hurt. The Bills’ defense looked to have made a big stop in the first quarter when Lawson sacked Mayfield for no gain on a fourth-and-4 play from the Bills’ 15-yard line. Basham, however, was called for jumping offside opposite Lawson on the Bills’ defensive line, giving Carolina a free first down. Mayfield cashed that in with a 2-yard touchdown pass to running back D’Onta Foreman on a fourth-and-goal play a short time later.
On the Bills’ ensuing offensive possession, the team lined up to go for it on fourth and 2 from its own 44-yard line, but a false start by Tanner Owen instead brought out backup quarterback Matt Barkley and punt team. Yes, you read that right.
3. Case Keenum had a tough night. A week after carving up the Denver Broncos, the Bills’ backup quarterback didn’t find nearly as much success against the Panthers’ projected defensive starters. Keenum finished 8 of 13 for just 46 yards in playing the first half. He was also intercepted once, when his pass intended for Jake Kumerow was deflected by Carolina’s Yetur Gross-Matos and bounced wildly into the arms of Panthers safety Jeremy Chinn.
"Most everybody is trying to focus on the game," Keenum said. "I mean, it's guys' livelihoods that are competing out there. You know, I've been in a lot of third, fourth preseason games where I'm competing for my job, my life and my family. You know, trying to earn a living. So there is guys that are really trying to compete. So we're all, I think, the guys (who) were playing, we're trying to do our best."
4. Isaiah Hodgins showed up on fourth down. The Bills’ most promising drive of the first half covered 71 yards over 19 plays, but failed to reach the end zone when the team failed in its attempt at a third successful fourth-down conversion on the drive. Running back Duke Johnson was stopped for a 2-yard loss on a fourth-and-1 carry from the Carolina 8-yard line to end the drive.
The two previous fourth downs on the drive were both converted with completions to wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins. The first one covered 3 yards on a fourth-and-2 play from the Panthers’ 48-yard line, while the second gained 2 yards on fourth and 1 from the Carolina 36-yard line. Hodgins, who is locked in a tight battle for a reserve spot at receiver, finished with four catches for 19 yards.
5. Running backs continue to look good. Barring a big surprise, the Bills’ depth chart at running back will include Devin Singletary, Zack Moss, rookie James Cook and veteran Taiwan Jones for his role on special teams. That seemingly leaves no room for Johnson or rookie Raheem Blackshear, but that’s not because either of them did anything wrong this summer. In fact, both of them made a compelling case to be on an NFL roster – even if it’s not here in Buffalo.
Johnson rushed six times for 20 yards and caught one pass for 2 yards. He also had a 9-yard rushing gain in the third quarter wiped out by a holding penalty against tight end Tommy Sweeney.
The woman who accused Bills punter Matt Araiza of raping her when she was 17 wrote recollections in a journal entry immediately after telling San Diego police that she was gang-raped.
Blackshear, meanwhile, led the Bills with 13 carries for 47 yards. It’s likely either Johnson or Blackshear could be headed to the team’s practice squad if they fail to make the 53-man roster.
6. O.J. Howard was in the game late. Howard, the tight end signed in free agency this offseason, played deep into the fourth quarter again in the preseason, which naturally invites speculation about his future with the team. Howard’s contract, however, makes it difficult for the Bills to move on from him, even if they wanted to. He’s scheduled to earn a fully-guaranteed base salary of $1.945 million in 2022, and the only way out of paying that for the Bills would be to trade Howard. That’s a tall order for a player who has had a quiet preseason. If cut, Howard would still count $2.62 million against the Bills’ salary cap, according to contracts website spotrac.com, with just $255,000 saved against the cap.
7. Nine players did not dress for the Bills. Although none of their starters played, they were in uniform for the game. Those who did not dress were: defensive tackle Tim Settle (calf), safety Jordan Poyer (elbow), offensive linemen Tommy Doyle (foot), Rodger Saffold (undisclosed) and Greg Mancz (ankle), wide receiver Marquez Stevenson (foot) and punter Matt Araiza (coach’s decision). Additionally, guard Ike Boettger (Achilles) and cornerback Tre’Davious White (knee) did not dress.
8. Eli Ankou, Tanner Gentry, Cam Lewis all leave with injuries. The Bills largely escaped any long-term injuries in the preseason, but a few players were hurt against Carolina. Ankou went out in the first half with a hamstring injury, while Gentry suffered both knee and hamstring injuries and Lewis left to get X-rays on his nose after being hurt in the second half. None of them returned to the game.
9. Sam Darnold goes down for Carolina. Darnold, the former No. 3 overall draft pick by the New York Jets, replaced Mayfield at quarterback for the Panthers in the second quarter. He scored Carolina’s third touchdown of the night with a 2-yard run in the third quarter, but left the game later in the same quarter. Darnold was hit by Bills defensive tackle C.J. Brewer and needed to be carted off the field with an ankle injury. Before leaving, Bills quarterback Josh Allen – a close friend – came out to wish Darnold well. The Panthers announced early in the fourth quarter that Darnold would not return.
10. A late start. Lightning in the area necessitated the field and crowd in the stands to evacuate about 30 minutes before the scheduled 7 p.m. kickoff. The game was delayed by about 30 minutes while the weather cleared out and the shelter-in-place order was lifted.
