The Buffalo Bills opened their preseason against the New York Giants with a loss, but players focused on positive developments within the team following the game at Highmark Stadium.
Quarterback Mike White highlighted the efforts of his teammates, noting strong play from offensive lineman Kendrick Green. “Kendrick Green was awesome on the line of scrimmage,” White said. “On the touchdown to K.J. (Hamler) he made an unreal play. He blocked his man and then also got hands on the other free runner. That gave me a little more time to find a guy.”
White also mentioned rookie lineman Chase Lundt for maintaining composure under pressure: “Chase Lundt (rookie lineman) in the huddle never got that wide-eyed rookie look. I thought he handled himself well.”
Rookie safety Jordan Hancock praised running back Frank Gore Jr., saying, “Frank Gore Jr.—that’s my dog right there,” Hancock said. “He was doing some good things out there. I’m excited for him.”
On defense, rookie defensive end Landon Jackson noted improvements despite not winning: “We had a lot of positives. I know we didn’t get the win, but there’s definitely some things we got good out there,” Jackson said.
Veteran edge rusher Joey Bosa spoke about using preseason games as learning opportunities: “It’s the time to make mistakes—it’s preseason,” Bosa said. “Learn from it, get some of the bad reps out of the way before the real thing starts. These games are helpful to see where we’re at, and to have the young guys get a lot of reps. A lot of these guys, it’s their first time out there on an NFL field. There’s a lot to clean up, but that’s why you play these games.”
Defensive tackle Javon Solomon credited teammates Deone Walker and Te’Cory Couch for standout performances: “(Deone (Walker), for sure—he went crazy off the rip,” Solomon said. “And Te’Cory Couch, he balled out today too. There was some good stuff to see.”
Running back Ray Davis received attention after filling in as kicker due to Tyler Bass’s absence—a role Davis had long sought since high school football days.
“I’ve always been trying to kick,” Davis said. “Every year in college I tried to convince somebody to let me. Finally, for somebody to say yes…”
Davis explained how he stepped up after observing teammates attempting kicks: “I saw Dawson (Knox) and Dalton (Kincaid) trying to kick with their toes,” Davis laughed. “I was like—oh, I won this job automatically.”
After practicing during a recent team event and getting approval from head coach Sean McDermott during game action, Davis successfully converted an extra point attempt.
“After that I just thought, either I’m gonna have a great night tonight and get a bunch of Instagram followers, or my DMs are gonna be talking about how I can’t kick a ball,” Davis said.
Coach McDermott commented on Davis’s successful attempt: “I wanted to see what it would look like. It’s different doing it in practice. We’ve always practiced it, but the transition, we were actually able to score.. I thought wow he actually did it,” shared McDermott.
