2 Bills' roster underdogs facing same 'special' circumstances in preseason finale

While one is more likely than the other to earn a Buffalo Bills' 53-man roster spot, both men must travel the same road in hopes of extending their NFL careers.

Wide receiver Tyrell Shavers and linebacker Jimmy Ciarlo will have the opportunity to prove their value on special teams during the Bills' preseason finale against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on August 23 at 7:30 p.m. ET. Their special teams potential will likely go a long way in determining whether they survive the August 26 league-wide roster cutdown day.

"There's gonna be three guys that make this team solely on special teams because of plays like this," said head coach Sean McDermott during a team film segment on HBO's "Hard Knocks" documentary series.

McDermott was highlighting a play made on a kickoff return in the August 9 preseason opener against the New York Giants. The player in the spotlight was none other than the little-known Ciarlo, who signed to Buffalo's 90-man training camp roster only three days prior to kickoff against the Giants.

"That's playoff caliber work right there," said McDermott.

.@ArmyWP_Football grad @ciarlo_jimmy playing at game speed 🫡#HardKnocks pic.twitter.com/yRkEoegkql
— NFL Films (@NFLFilms) August 20, 2025

Ciarlo, a former Army team captain who tore his ACL as an undrafted rookie with the New York Jets last summer, has six tackles on defense and two special teams stops in two exhibition appearances. He's the ultimate roster longshot, but he could force his way into a job by being a reliable core special teamer.

As for Shavers, he's been the Bills' sixth wide receiver each of the past two seasons, but the team kept only five WRs on the roster while stashing him on the practice squad. He made three regular season appearances in 2024 as a gameday elevation, and he took a tunnel screen 69 yards to the house against the New York Jets for his first career touchdown.

This summer, Shavers leads the team in preseason receiving yards (99), but the Bills will likely only dedicate a sixth roster spot to the WR position if the player can serve double duty.

Shavers suggested that he's shown a significant improvement on special teams this summer compared to where he was one year ago.

"Tremendously, I feel like I've grown. It's night and day compared to last year. I put on some weight, which I planned to do over the offseason, just so I can be able to block bigger guys and do things, especially at gunner, too, on special teams," said Shavers in a media scrum after Thursday's practice in Orchard Park.

The 26-year-old Shavers has played six special teams snaps in each of the first two preseason games and has one tackle.

The Bills are required to trim their roster down to 53 players by 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday, August 26.

Jimmy Ciarlo with Jets — Jul 27, 2024; Florham Park, NJ, USA; New York Jets linebacker Jimmy Ciarlo (45) stretches with teammates during training camp at Atlantic Health Jets Training Center | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

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