The Buffalo Bills are about to get their first live look at this new chapter when they host the Carolina Panthers on Saturday at 1PM at the new Highmark Stadium. It’s the first game in the new building, and after training camp wrapped, the real sorting begins: who’s actually sticking around when the Bills trim the roster down to 53?
That’s the part of August that gets brutal. A lot of the players on the field this weekend won’t still be there in September, and for a few Bills, this preseason feels especially important. If they don’t make a strong impression now, their roster spot could disappear fast.
Sedrick Van Pran-Granger is one of those names. Buffalo re-signed Connor McGovern to a four-year deal this offseason, locking him in as the team’s franchise center moving forward.
That left Van Pran-Granger, who the Bills drafted in 2024, in a backup role. Then Buffalo added Lloyd Cushenberry later in free agency after he came over from the Tennessee Titans.
With that kind of competition in the room, Van Pran-Granger has to hold his own this preseason against Cushenberry. If he doesn’t, it would not be a surprise to see the Bills release him or trade him for a draft pick.
Mike Danna is in a different kind of squeeze. He arrives from the Kansas City Chiefs with real pedigree and championship experience, but Buffalo crowded the outside linebacker group this offseason.
The Bills didn’t just shift last year’s edge rushers outside - they also signed Bradley Chubb and used a second-round pick on T.J. Parker.
Danna could still put together a decent preseason, but with a one-year deal and so many bodies around him, he may end up on the wrong side of the numbers if others match his production.
Then there’s Mitch Wishnowsky, who already dealt with a revolving door at punter last season before Buffalo brought him in. The Bills re-signed him on a one-year deal in free agency, but they also drafted Florida punter Tommy Doman Jr., and ESPN’s Alaina Getzenberg has Doman Jr. leading the way for the starting job.
Getzenberg said, " The punting job remains Tommy Doman Jr Tyler Bass, who made all eight of his field goal attempts." If Doman Jr. doesn’t need much convincing to win the job, Wishnowsky could be out early if the coaching staff decides to go with the rookie.
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The head-to-head and playoff angle only sharpens the discussion, especially in a class that has already produced two of the leagues most recognizable quarterbacks. Jacksons dual-threat profile and Allens blend of power passing and running have fueled years of arguments about who has done more with the early years of their careers, and the numbers are part of why the debate keeps circling back. For Bills fans, the real tension is not whether Allen belongs in elite company now, but how long it will take before the rest of the league stops treating his case as an open question. [Read more 🡒]