7 takeaways from Bills dreadful performance in preseason loss to Bears

Bishop, Bills' depth struggles in all three phases as most starters watch from sidelines

Well.

The Bills vs. Bears preseason game took place on Sunday night.

And what a slugfest it was.

The Bills were dominated from pillar to post, in all phases of the game as they fell to Chicago 38-0 to conclude 60 minutes of misery. It is believed to be the Bills’ worst preseason defeat of all-time (unconfirmed).

Quarterback Mike White earned the start and was abysmal behind Buffalo’s other backups, as Josh Allen and most of the other Bills starters were provided a respite from the ugly events that occurred inside Soldier Field on Sunday.

White finished the game 4 of 11 passing for 54 yards and a 52.8 passer rating while being sacked twice, all but waving the white flag in the battle with Mitch Trubisky to be the team’s backup quarterback. Trubisky played to start the second half and finished the game 7 of 13 for 55 yards, but this one was more about White’s inability to do anything with his opportunity, which should push Trubisky in front for good when it comes to this QB competition of sorts.

White’s performance was a microcosm of what the Bills experienced as a team throughout the exhibition affair, as Buffalo didn’t fare any better defensively or in any way, frankly. This was a game where you take the game tape and burn it as quickly as possible while looking ahead to the third and final game of the preseason next week in Tampa Bay.

With that said, before we move on, here are several takeaways from the Bears’ annihilation of the Bills on Sunday night:

Bishop burned

Finally, Cole Bishop was healthy enough to see the field on Sunday, albeit briefly. And during his abbreviated stint against the Bears, he looked wholly out of place and unprepared.

On the Bears’ third play from scrimmage, Bishop displayed sound play recognition and pursuit on a pass to the flat before fanning on a tackle attempt. A few plays later, he was able to secure a tackle in coverage, but later, he got torched by Bears wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus, who streaked up the seam and past Bishop for a 36-yard touchdown that helped put Chicago ahead 7-0 with 11:01 remaining in the first quarter.

Bishop had been out for several days with a quad injury but returned to practice in a limited fashion earlier this week before graduating to full participation on Wednesday and Friday. He was thrust into action against the Bears’ starters on Sunday, and it did not go well, as he quickly exited stage left after just one series with the first team.

The concern with the Bills’ former second-round pick has never been related to his physical ability, but rather his mental side of the game, specifically his ability to diagnose plays on the back end and quickly read and react to what he’s seeing. As was the case during his rookie season, he once again has appeared a step behind early in his second professional campaign.

While Bishop’s performance left a bit to be desired, so did that of Damar Hamlin, who was called for defensive holding and also blown up on a block, which helped pave the way for a one-yard touchdown run for Bears running back Ian Wheeler. Taylor Rapp didn’t play in this game, and while he will typically provide a big boost for the team’s safety unit, beyond Rapp, there is plenty to be concerned about at this position. That includes a shoulder injury sustained by rookie S/nickel cornerback Jordan Hancock, who exited the game early in the second half and did not return.

Close Shave(rs)

Wide receiver Tyrell Shavers is going to make it mighty difficult for the Bills to keep him off the initial 53-man roster. He continued to make plays at the wide receiver position on Sunday night, finishing with a couple of catches for 29 yards receiving, including a nice back-shoulder reception from White — one of the QB’s lone highlights of the evening.

Shavers now has 99 yards receiving on four receptions through two preseason games and has shown consistent ability to win 1-on-1 matchups along the outside. While Head Coach Sean McDermott has said previously that Shavers must improve his ability on special teams to make the team’s roster, he may very well be one of the team’s best four or five options at wide receiver at this point.

Elijah Moore had another forgettable evening, dropping two passes while finishing with just one catch for five yards. At this point, while they have differing skill sets, you would have to say Shavers has done more to prove his case as a roster candidate than Moore. Even beyond Shavers, Laviska Shenault, who got another opportunity to return kicks on Sunday, or Kristian Wilkerson may have done more than Moore at this stage of the preseason.

In addition, WR Curtis Samuel did not play against the Bears. The only three WRs who are roster locks at this point are Khalil Shakir, Keon Coleman and Joshua Palmer.

Beyond that, it’s a crapshoot.

Tough look for the rooks

After the Bills’ loss to the New York Giants a week ago, there was a bit to be excited about when it came to the team’s rookie class. The same couldn’t be said after preseason game No. 2 against the Bears.

In the early going, with Chicago’s starters on the field, the first-year trio of defensive tackle T.J. Sanders, defensive tackle Deone Walker and edge rusher Landon Jackson got pushed around and failed to make an impact. Even EDGE Michael Hoecht, who had a solid game against the Giants, failed to make an impact until he came away with a sack with time ticking away late in the first half.

Walker was able to get his hand on a pass at the line of scrimmage, but appeared to be a liability in run support. Sanders was dominated at the point of attack on more than one occasion, failing to match the physicality of the player lined up across from him. Jackson once again looked relatively clueless while displaying a slow get-off, which prevented him from making any meaningful impact. For the second straight game, Jackson was kept off the stat sheet.

Edge rusher Javon Solomon was behind Jackson in the pecking order, and although he came away with three tackles, he was also called for an offside penalty and did not stand out in any meaningful way. Defensive tackle DeWayne Carter chased down a screen pass, which was somewhat of a revelation for the Bills, but beyond that, there wasn’t much to write home about from Buffalo’s defensive front.

Buffalo Joe, say it ain’t so

After a solid performance in preseason game No. 1 against the Giants, Joe Andreessen struggled to find his footing in Sunday’s matchup against the Bears. He got lost in coverage on a couple of occasions and was also a step behind in run support throughout the evening, too often trailing the play rather than meeting the ball-carrier in the hole. He also allowed Bears running backs to slip a couple of tackles.

After being featured on this past week’s episode of HBO’s Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Buffalo Bills, Andreessen failed to measure up against Chicago. With that said, this is not an All-Pro-level player, and he is going to have his ups and downs. Buffalo Joe will be back with a vengeance. Don’t count this guy out.

Free Frank Gore Jr.

For the second straight week, Gore Jr. performed reasonably well, albeit against backups and third-seamers. He finished with eight carries for 51 yards and also saw some time on special teams. Gore Jr. likely won’t make the team’s 53-man roster out of training camp, but he will be one of the first players Buffalo targets for its practice squad on cutdown day.

Robbins is rollin’

One of the stars for the Bills through two weeks of the preseason has been Brad Robbins, who punted the ball six times for a net average of 48.8 yards per punt. His long punt was 62 yards. He continues to prove why the Bills let go of his competition, Jake Camarda, before the start of training camp.

Robbins has yet to hold for kicker Tyler Bass in a game setting, but McDermott said this past week that the plan is for the Bills to get Bass back this coming week against the Buccaneers.

Depth a concern

While it’s doubtful the Bills will have to play a regular-season game with a lineup full of backups as they did against the Bears on Sunday, what we saw from Buffalo against Chicago was somewhat disturbing. We have seen plenty of times over the years where a key player has gone down at the wrong time, whether it be late in the regular season or postseason, and it’s nice to know you have players you can trust if thrust into a big spot. But the Bills’ performance in their second preseason game did not offer any hope in that regard.

Back to the drawing board.