It's preseason game #3 - the most important game of them all (per preseason standards, of course). It's getting close to the first cut down day, August 30th. Because of the lockout, undrafted rookies are going to have an extremely difficult time cracking the roster. Veterans will receive the benefit of the doubt unless they are being pushed out by the new draft class or for financial reasons.
Here's my list of players to watch tonight and why you should be keeping a close eye on them:
MARCUS EASLEY - Easley had a rough start last week against the Broncos but as the game went on, he looked more comfortable and even made a few good catches. It's also been noted that he's had a good week of practice this week, resembling a legitimate wide receiver. This is what the Bills need after Lee Evans turned in another good performance with the Ravens. With Donald Jones out for the remainder of the preseason, this is Easley's audition for the role of the #2 receiver. It's not likely to happen this quickly but if he can turn it up a few notches tonight, he can give the coaches a reason to think twice about where he stands in this group of wide receivers. They desperately want him to be that guy but he has to prove himself first.
THE O-LINE - We all know the drill here. Basically this group of lineman has been pretty bad thus far. They need a good night to give us fans some hope going into the season. Buddy Nix told us all that they liked this group of lineman better than we do. Now it's time for this group to prove Nix right. Bell needs to redeem his god awful performance from last week. Levitre needs to establish himself as a starter once again. And they need to hold up for Fitzy.
FITZPATRICK - I've been having some conflicting opinions about our starting QB. On one hand, he's had a pretty weak camp so far. On the other hand, he's never been that type of QB to begin with. Hell, that's why Trent Edwards beat him out last year in preseason (not the only reason though). But there's one thing I strongly believe to be true about Fitz - he's a gamer. He plays best when the pressure is on and when the bullets are flying... for real. That might be enough reason for fans to want a different quarterback next year. They might want that QB who can throw a 20 yard out and looks tremendous doing so. Or they could simply say, I want my QB to be more consistent. I totally understand that. But tonight is an interesting night for Fitz. The fans seem down on him. The local media is down on him. Fitz needs to remind fans why he was basically given the job this year. Fitz can ease the minds of fans by putting up a touchdown or two (two would be great for the Bearded one). The bottom line for me is, I believe in Fitz. But for the first time in a long time, I'm starting to question him as our long term starter. I see the Bills round-up clips from their website and they feature mostly Thigpen (more on him in a bit) highlights. But I know that can change with a solid performance from him tonight. Fitz, we need your A game tonight. Yes, it's preseason, but the starting offense has yet to score a touchdown yet. They need a few tonight.
CJ SPILLER - This one could also read Fred Jackson. After all of the hoopla about Jackson's complaints this week, it will be interesting to see who has the better night tonight. Who will get the first carry? Coaches promised Fred it would be him but that could always change. Can Spiller follow up his decent performance last week with a GOOD performance on the ground? Ultimately, it doesn't really matter who has the better night because this league is a 2 back league and we need both guys for the duration of the season. What we really need to look for is CJ's progression as a blocker. He whiffed on his blitz pick ups last week and needs to show more in that department against the Jags. I also want to see more north-south running and less east-west running which gets him in trouble. Granted, he doesn't get much help with the O-line but it would be nice to see him correct some of the mistakes he made last week. Spiller is going to have a HUGE role with the Bills this season. His development is critical for the Nix/Gailey regime. He was their first pick. It's time to see some results. I could probably cut and paste this paragraph when it comes to time for "WHO TO WATCH" for the first regular season game.
MIKE CAUSSIN/ZACK PIANALTO - The more I think about it, the more I think Shawn Nelson is in danger of losing his spot on this team because of his prolonged injury that has kept him mostly out of camp and the preseason. The way I see it - Scott Chandler has the #1 TE spot locked down. David Martin will likely get that #2 spot because of his blocking abilities. And then it comes down to a 2 man race - Caussin and Pianalto. So far, Caussin has stood out more in camp and in game action.
Other notables:
Michael Jasper - Kyle Williams has been working with Jasper more. A sign that the coaching staff wants to give Jasper a real shot of making this team. I still think he's a practice squad guy right now because he's too raw at this point. He has shown VERY little in preseason games. Don't get me wrong, I, like many of you, love the Jasper story but he has to show more to justify a roster spot.
Kamar Aiken - Because of the emergence of Roosevelt and the Bills high hopes for Easley, it's unlikely he'll get a roster spot but he sure looks like a good practice squad guy right now. I really like what I've seen of Aiken so far. He's looked good in camp and I thought he looked good in his limited time last week.
Tyler Thigpen - He looked much better last week compared to his first preseason game, a sign that he is starting to feel comfortable with Gailey's system again. Like I mentioned earlier, it looked like Thigpen had a good week of practice. Thigpen's guaranteed the #2 spot so there's no real reason to watch him other than the possibility he performs really well which could cause the coaching staff to think twice during the season if Fitz continues to struggle.
Andra Davis/Spencer Johnson - 2 veteran players who have looked damn good so far but for some reason continue to be mentioned as guys who could possibly be cut for reasons I don't understand. Some have speculated that Spencer makes too much money for a backup. Some of have said that the Morrison signing could spell the end of Davis' Bills tenure. I disagree all the way around. Both men have looked good and deserve a roster spot.
Robert Eddins - the undrafted rookie from Ball State has quietly made a few nice plays. There's a bit of a logjam at the LB position (funny because we were saying the opposite just a few months ago) so it's very unlikely he'll make the opening day roster but he's a good candidate for the PS.
Chris Hairston - Hairston has been out for a few weeks with an injury. He has a lot of family at the game tonight so I expect a decent performance out of him. Despite him looking mostly clumsy in camp prior to his injury, I can't see the Bills not putting him on the 53 man roster. Here's to hoping we see something good out of the 4th rounder tonight.
Reid Forrest - Can he unseat the long tenured Brian Moorman? Did you know his net average is better than Moorman's? But can the Bills afford another PR gaff? Moorman is beloved by the community.
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