RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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CLEVELAND, OHIO - AUGUST 22: Ian Wheeler #27 of the Buffalo Bills runs the ball during the third quarter of a preseason game against the Cleveland Browns at Huntington Bank Field on August 22, 2026 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Lauren Leigh Bacho/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Buffalo Bills beat the Cleveland Browns 31-7 for the second straight resounding preseason win, and after the score was 7-7 in the first quarter — post-lightning delay — Joe Brady’s club dominated for the remainder of the game.
You can read staffer what Sean Murphy’s wrote his stock up/stock down piece immediately following the victory, and Fernando Schmude posted his observational notebook from this contest. Check ‘em.
These were my takeaways from this convincing Bills win.
New developmental pieces are arriving
During the Brandon Beane era, the Bills have done a remarkable job developing high-caliber talents who enter the league with raw skill sets. Look no further than Josh Allen. But Ed Oliver, Dawson Knox, Spencer Brown, Greg Rousseau, James Cook, and Cole Bishop are other examples of those project-y types who’ve blossomed within the Bills organization since arriving in Orchard Park.
And the next wave is arriving.
Landon Jackson, a 2025 selection that always felt like a pick for 2026, looks locked and loaded in the 4i – 5tech role. Not just larger, thicker, and ready for dirty work. But he maintained his explosiveness through his offseason body transformation — and remember, he ran 4.68 with a 40.5-inch vertical at 6’6” and 264 pounds at the 2025 NFL Combine. He’s officially a scary specimen for opposing offensive lines.
T.J. Sanders, whom I wrote about as the ultimate X-factor on this year’s Buffalo defense, looks more motivated and with more pop in his hands than a season ago. Even Jordan Hancock, who was probably the least project-y of this youth movement on defense because of all the hats he wore at Ohio State, appears primed to be a magnet to the football with his 4.46 speed and 41.5-inch vertical explosiveness. Don’t sleep on new swing tackle Tylan Grable, Jalon Kilgore, Keleki Latu, or rookie Ar’maj Reed-Adams either.
After a marvelous 2022 draft class that featured Cook, Terrel Bernard, Khalil Shakir, and Christian Benford, the Bills’ clear hits had been a bit more spotty. But with the new upside-based projects starting to arrive, those drafting perceptions will change in 2026.
The Bills are suddenly loaded at RB and TE
Sure, they were working against backups in Cleveland on Saturday, but they too, are backups, and were on the field with Bills backups — Buffalo’s running backs were sensational in the team’s second preseason game.
As a longtime advocate of waiting for running backs in the draft, because of the surplus of capable talents available on Day 3 I’m certainly convinced that if Phillip Wheeler needed to take regular-season carries behind the Bills starting offensive line he could be perfectly fine as a complementary piece to the club’s run game. The same goes for Frank Gore Jr.
Wheeler has forced five missed tackles on 21 preseason attempts to date — good for a 23.8% missed tackle forced rate, and anything above 20% is high-end for a running back. He also has a pair of 10-plus yard runs and a hefty 3.24 yards-after-contact-per-rush average. Gore has forced six missed tackles on just 16 attempts, good for a 37.5% MTF rate. He has three runs of 10 or more yards.
I went into the training camp with a low-key concern about the depth in Buffalo’s backfield. That concern has vanished. Seriously. If they’re called upon this season — either from the 53-man roster or via practice-squad elevation, these two will be ready.
The same goes for the tight end group, although with Dalton Kincaid, Knox, and Jackson Hawes, we all presumed the Bills were deep at that position. But as it currently stands, Keleki Latu and even Shane Zylstra have done enough to legitimately deepen Buffalo’s tight-end room.
Zylstra had three snags for 29 yards — that featured 13 yards after the catch and two first downs — against the Browns, and for the second-straight week, was a ferocious blocker for the run and pass game. Latu blocked his behind off against the Panthers and was a formidable edge-protecting presence in pass protection against Cleveland. Plus, at north of 6’6” and 250-plus pounds, he’s actually most tantalizing as a receiver.
There’s more diversity to this Bills offense
Of course Brady wasn’t showing anything remotely close to his full hand during the preseason, yet what he has shown has been an impressive array of pre-snap alignments and play-calling.
Kyle Allen’s utilized play-action on just over 31% of his drop backs. Shane Buechele’s thrown off play-action 52.4% of the time, and five of Josh Allen’s nine drop backs featured play-action. HELLO. And many of these play-action drop backs have come from under center. We’ve seen jet sweeps. Jumbo looks. Gap-scheme running. Outside zone. Tunnel screens. Pitch plays. Outside screens. Deep overs. Shot plays down the sideline. More usage of the middle of the field at the intermediate level.
I don’t want to attempt to glean too much from these first two preseason games from a schematic offensive perspective, but assuming there’s been little to no game-planning, and we’ve only gotten a sliver of Brady’s full-scale offense, I’m confident venturing a guess the Bills will be throwing the kitchen sink at opposing defenses this season.
Buffalo’s run fits on defense feel more urgent and fundamentally sound
The Bills have surrendered 3.1 yards per carry in consecutive preseason games. Yes, it’s just the preseason, but in watching the film, Buffalo’s run-defense unit feels noticeably more buttoned up and faster to the football from all 11 players on the field.
I can’t say I know all the intricacies of Jim Leonhard’s run-defensive philosophy and how he coaches it differently than Sean McDermott or any of theBills defensive coordinators during the McDermott er...
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