Buffalo Bills snap counts, preseason 2014: Panthers game update

Two preseason games are in the books, with the Buffalo Bills set to begin the first of three remaining exhibition contests a week from today in Pittsburgh. Lucky for us, two games is enough to start to get a better sense of player rotations within position battles, and which players the team is looking at the hardest as they think about the big-picture roster they must assemble on August 30.

Let's take a look at the snap counts from not only last night's 20-18 win over the Carolina Panthers, but the preseason as a whole thus far, to dive into those meaty topics.

Offense

Keep an eye on that fullback battle. Summers has been ahead of Rodriguez all summer, but Rodriguez has made some excellent blocks when he's had opportunities, and he also might be a more viable option on special teams. (See below.)

Robert Woods may not be taking many reps with the first-team offense right now, but he's certainly getting a lot of playing time as one of the few receivers at the top of the depth chart to work both outside and in. Knowing that Chris Hogan is closing in on locking up a roster spot, given his extensive action with the first-team offense, that bundle of T.J. Graham, Marcus Easley, and Kevin Elliott is the group to watch. Also, the back-end receiver that has gotten the longest look is Chris Summers; he might be a prime candidate for the practice squad.

Unless Tony Moeaki starts to come on as he works his way back from injury, he may be in trouble. He didn't enter last night's contest until well into the fourth quarter.

Doug Marrone is playing the crap out of his first-team offensive line, with the exception of Eric Wood, who is the only truly known quantity up front. The only real battle for a starting job, however, seems to be at right guard, where Kraig Urbik and rookie Cyril Richardson continue to rotate into the second half of preseason games.

Doug Legursky has taken every second-team center rep thus far, spelling Wood. (He has then in turn been replaced by MacPherson.) The team may begin experimenting with other players in the pivot (Urbik) at some point, but it hasn't happened yet.

Defense

The battle for the fourth defensive end spot is flying under the radar, but Jacquies Smith, Jarius Wynn, and Ike Igbinosun have all flashed to the point where that decision might end up being a difficult one to make. The same is true at defensive tackle, where strong play from Landon Cohen and Corbin Bryant has pushed Stefan Charles and Alan Branch down into some third-team work early.

Linebacker has not turned out to be as volatile as it could have been. Brandon Spikes, Nigel Bradham, and Keith Rivers are the ones. Preston Brown, Stevenson Sylvester, and Randell Johnson are the twos. Ty Powell, Jimmy Gaines, and Xavius Boyd are the threes. Sylvester, Johnson, Powell, and Gaines are all in the mix for two to three spots on the final roster.

Ross Cockrell is an interesting story; his playing time increased in Carolina, but he spent a huge chunk of his time in the slot, and that's where the Bills are currently focusing his energies. That has meant good things for Ron Brooks, who now looks like a very strong bet to make the final roster thanks to a couple of good performances on the boundary. Keep an eye on Bobby Felder, too; he's working in ahead of Cockrell at this point, and might be a prime practice squad candidate.

If any one player that has spent most of his time with the second-teamers in camp has earned first-team reps, it's Duke Williams, who continued his strong play in Carolina replacing Da'Norris Searcy in the starting lineup. (Searcy missed most of last week's practices as he and his wife dealt with a pregnancy scare.)

Special Teams

This is an especially interesting chart to keep track of. Many of the names at the top of this list are currently stuck in position battle logjams at their respective offensive and defensive positions, and if the team is taking healthy looks at these players on coverage teams, it only bodes well for their chances of making the team. The presence of the much-discussed reserve running backs is a welcome sight, as is Lawson's name; he is such a valuable reserve for this team.

There are other players not on this list that will likely factor into special teams plans when the games start to count (chiefly Corey Graham), but for now, this chart may be vital to understanding which reserves have an edge over others in terms of having game-day utility as part of a 53-man squad.