Plan B: Bills Enter Preseason Finale With Backup QB Question
Because it's the meaningless preseason finale, the Buffalo Bills enter Saturday's game against the Chicago Bears with nothing to lose. However, there are a couple of players headed to the Windy City with everything to gain.
While quarterback Josh Allen and the starters are expected to play at least one series, the real drama will begin when the backups enter the game. Namely at quarterback and middle linebacker, where the Bills will - hopefully - come out of this game with a clear idea of who will man those key roles in what Bills Mafia hopes is a Super Bowl season.
The battle for No. 2 quarterback behind Allen is close, if not quality. Matt Barkley and Kyle Allen have alternated good performances with mediocre showings. Allen entered training camp as the favorite to win the job, but his lackluster play has left the door ajar. Barkley has a higher completion percentage (77-66), more yards (265-234) and more touchdowns (2-1) than Allen, but has also thrown an alarming three interceptions in only 27 passes.
Allen will likely get a chance to seal the gig against the Bears, as coach Sean McDermott announced Thursday that Barkley has been missing practice with an elbow injury suffered last week against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
At middle linebacker, the Bills haven't had a player snatch the job that belonged for years to Tremaine Edmunds. Neither leading candidates Tyrel Dodson nor A.J. Klein have exactly jumped off the page in the first two preseason games.
Klein is considered the favorite because of his experience, but feels like he needs a positive showing to lock down the role in the middle of the Bills' defense entering the Week 1 regular-season showdown against Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets.
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