When the Buffalo Bills drafted Devin Singletary in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft out of Florida Atlantic University, the team envisioned adding a talented running back who was adept at finding his own creases and running lanes. Singletary demonstrated his ability to contribute in the ground game during Thursday night’s 24-16 victory over the Indianapolis Colts in the preseason opener for both teams. Maybe more importantly, Singletary also showed he can be counted on as a pass-catching threat out of the backfield.
On a day when LeSean McCoy got the night off and veteran Frank Gore was limited (rushing twice for seven yards while catching one pass for four yards), it was Singletary who made an instant impact out of the backfield.
Singletary rushed a team-high nine times for 27 yards and caught all three of his targets for 21 yards, accounting for 48 all-purpose yards.
“I feel like I did pretty good,” said Singletary. “All I really had to do was run. The line opened up some holes for me, so I just had to make some moves and get what I could get.”
After the game, Gore, who appears bound for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, heaped high praise on Singletary after his first NFL action.
“He (Singletary) has a great feel for it being so young. Out of all the guys who got drafted since I’ve been playing, he’s the most natural,” Gore said.
Singletary played a huge role in the Bills’ first scoring drive of the season. At one point, Singletary either ran the ball or caught a pass on seven of the first eight plays of the 10-play, 46-yard drive, and finished with 37 total yards on the drive: 16 rushing yards on four carries along with all three of his receptions for 21 yards.
Displaying a knack for eluding defenders and creating positive runs in limited space, Singletary showcased his outstanding vision, his decision-making, and his ability to move the sticks as he converted three first downs on the night.
“Overall, both in the run and the pass game I thought he did a good job,” Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott said after the game. “Some of the things you look for is that it’s not too big for some of these young guys and he looked into the game and focused.”