By Rich Kowalski / Billswire.usatoday.com
After spending nearly a week practicing with the Carolina Panthers at their training camp in Spartanburg, SC, the Buffalo Bills and their practice counterparts finally got to faceoff in a game setting.
Buffalo came into the game with a hefty handful of storylines to watch and ended up easily handling the Cam Newton-less Panthers on their own turf.
The Bills showed flashes of what many think this young roster is capable of doing. Let’s check in with how some of Buffalo performed, for better or worse.
Here’s a stock report on the Bills’ roster following the win:
Stock Up: Ed Oliver
Under head coach Sean McDermott the Bills have no doubt leaned towards the defensive side of the ball when it comes to on-field performance and acquisitions the team made in the NFL draft. Buffalo selected defensive tackle Ed Oliver at No. 9 overall in the 2019 draft and the rookie has looked more like a veteran on the field.
Oliver has caused problems for opposing quarterbacks in both of the team’s preseason games. He’s batted a pass down at the line in each game and applied heavy pressure to a fairly veteran-heavy Panthers offensive line.
Oliver may be a rookie but his stock is soaring as he looks to be a staple of the Bills’ cold front for years to come.
Stock Up: Bills’ pass defense
In 2018, Buffalo’s ferocious pass defense was ranked 1st in the league and didn’t get nearly as much credit as they deserved.
The team reloaded their defensive backfield depth in the offseason and have come into the 2019 season with a considerable presence. The Bills didn’t allow Carolina to do much through the air on Friday night and even added a pick-six to the mix.
The Buffalo secondary is slated to be a physical and intelligent group that will make even more noise across the league this season and have the chance to further cement the growing trend that throwing against the Bills is not as easy as it once was.
Stock Up: Tommy Sweeney
Finally, some tight end action!
Last week, Buffalo’s seventh-round pick, Tommy Sweeney, didn’t have much of a chance to flourish in the limited time he saw with the starting offense. Friday night, Sweeney got to work and took advantage of an injured tight end group for the Bills.
Sweeney finished the game with two catches for 47 yards and looked in sync with Allen. If Buffalo’s injury woes at the tight end position continue, Sweeney and Allen’s chemistry might force McDermott to send the rookie from Boston College to the huddle often early.
Stock Up: Levi Wallace
Coming into 2018 as an undrafted rookie free agent, no one knew how Levi Wallace’s career would play out. The Bills’ youth-heavy roster gave the then-rookie chances early on and he didn’t look back.
Some thought that the arrival of E.J. Gaines and Kevin Johnson may bump Wallace from the starting lineup but Wallace has been Buffalo’s most consistent cornerback on the roster aside from Tre’Davious White.
Wallace again boosted his stock Friday night. He made breaking up two pass plays in the first half look incredibly easy in man-to-man coverage and might be the Bills’ best-kept secret in their secondary.
Stock Down: Bills running game
Going into their second season under offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, Buffalo fans hope that the Bills are going to get their rushing attack back on track. Buffalo’s run game has dropped significantly from their top-five glory in years prior.
While the Bills added a touchdown on the ground from LeSean McCoy looking better out of the backfield, the back finished with four carries for just 6 yards.
Devin Singletary has looked impressive through two games and may just be that potential heir to the McCoy throne but as a group, the team just could not get anything going on designed run plays. This might not be a terribly bad thing as the league is now pass-heavy.
Also, get Christian Wade a roster spot. The guy is something special.
Stock Down: Cody Ford
Buffalo’s second-round pick hasn’t quite put it together in the right tackle position and was beaten on multiple plays on the Bills’ first series.
The Bills may need to move Ford back to guard, where he looks more comfortable, but need to figure this out soon as the development of Josh Allen is partially dependent on those around him.
Stock Down: Zay Jones
On Friday night, Zay Jones was nowhere to be seen. Jones had zero targets as Allen found a grove throwing the ball to his new weapon, Cole Beasley.
It’s not uncommon for starting receivers to have a down preseason game but the fact that Josh Allen didn’t look Jones’ way once on 11 pass attempts is very notable.
Next week, the Bills travel to Detroit which should provide a better picture of how Allen wants to divvy out his throws.
Stock Down: Stephen Hauschka
While Stephen Hauschka certainly earned his nickname (Hausch-Money), he hasn’t quite been that for Buffalo this preseason.
The kicker missed kicks in back-to-back preseason games and hasn’t really looked confident kicking the ball going back to last season. This may simply be preseason jitters or the kicker trying new things out but hopefully, the Bills will be putting the ball in the endzone more and not relying on 3-point drives.
If these issues do continue, Panthers kicker, Joey Slye, looks poised to be snatched up come August 31st when rosters go down to 53 players.