The conventional wisdom is that a team playing in its 2nd preseason game will have a significant edge on an opponent playing its first. Though I lost w/ Buffalo in Sunday's Hall of Fame Game, I thought that they outplayed the Giants.
They lost because a reserve defensive back was beaten badly on a long throw and completely misplayed his man and the ball in the 4th quarter.

Buffalo is likely to be one of the surprise teams in the league this year, much like the Panthers were last year. How far the Bills go this year will largely depend on QB E.J. Manuel.

Manuel didn't play well in the opener but expect a better effort from him in this situation. He'll be looking to connect with the 4th overall pick in the draft, Sammy Watkins. In a draft that was very deep at the WR position, the Bills gave up a lot to secure Watkins, and in turn, there's a lot of pressure on him. The stars won't play much in this one, so look for C.J. Spiller and Fred Jackson to be on the sidelines for most of the game. Buffalo is very high on 3rd string RB Bryce Brown, who ran well in the HOF game. Brown will receive the bulk load of the carries in this one, as they want to see what he can do and possibly make a trade to get better at a different position.


Cal Newton is questionable tonight and he will be throwing to all new faces, so his timing will definitely be off. He is also coming off of ankle surgery in the off season, so he won't be playing much at all in this one if he does start. The Panthers have holes at pretty much every position, especially on the offensive side. With the Bills having already played a game, along with the significant talent gap between these two squads, look for Buffalo to take care of business here on Friday night.