Predicting the Buffalo Bills 53-man roster as the preseason comes to an end

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (WKBW) — With the preseason now a thing of the past the Buffalo Bills must trim their roster from 91 players to 53. Final roster cuts are due on Tuesday at 4 p.m. and the front office has some difficult decisions to make.

Here's my best guess at how the 53-man roster will piece itself together:

Quarterback:

Josh Allen and Mitch Trubisky (2)

Mitch Trubisky's health will decide whether or not he's on the 53-man roster. With Sean McDermott saying Trubisky is week-to-week, there's a chance the team will need to add a different quarterback to backup Josh Allen.

But I believe the Bills will keep both Allen and Trubisky and have a practice squad QB backup Allen for the first few weeks of the season if Trubisky isn't ready. Based on who they signed first, let's assume that's DiNucci.

Running back:

James Cook, Ray Davis, Ty Johnson, Reggie Gilliam (fullback) (4)

This may be the easiest position on the roster to predict. Cook is the Bills top running back and 2024 fourth-round pick Ray Davis has emerged as his primary backup. Johnson's injury hurt his chances at the primary backup role, but never put his roster spot in danger. Gilliam does a ton for this team and is a key special teams player, which also makes him safe.

Tight end:

Dalton Kincaid, Dawson Knox, and Quintin Morris (3)

Despite a valiant effort from Zach Davidson, Quintin Morris wins the third tight end job. Davidson made more splash plays during the summer but Morris also had a strong camp and is a key special teams contributor. Morris has an injury that is considered week-to-week but I still think he's on the Bills final roster and Davidson lands on the practice squad.

Wide receiver:

Khalil Shakir, Keon Coleman, Mack Hollins, Curtis Samuel, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and Tyrell Shavers (6)

Tyrell Shavers was the best of the rest all summer and earned the final wide receiver spot on the roster. Shavers can contribute on special teams and brings much-needed size to the wide receiver room.

Hamler could've pushed for a roster spot with a strong preseason but I'm expecting he'll stick around on the practice squad. I could see the same thing happening with Justin Shorter, but it wasn't a great summer for the Bills 2023 draft pick.

As for Samuel and Valdes-Scantling, McDermott made it seem like they both have a chance at being available for the start of the season despite their injuries.

Offensive line:

Dion Dawkins, David Edwards, Connor McGovern, O'Cyrus Torrence, Spencer Brown, Ryan Van Demark, Alec Anderson, La'el Collins, Sedrick Van Pran-Granger and Tylan Grable (10)

La'el Collins gets the edge over some of the other guys he's been competing with because of his experience. He brings the Bills position flexibility at tackle and guard which is something the team covets. Aside from Collins, all of the other primary backups are younger players. Both Van Pran Granger and Grable are 2024 draft picks and have shown flashes of promise this summer.

Defensive line:

Greg Rousseau, Ed Oliver, DaQuan Jones, Von Miller, A.J. Epenesa, Austin Johnson, Dawuane Smoot, Javon Solomon, DeWayne Carter (9)

There aren't any real surprises on the defensive line after a very impressive summer for the group. Smoot proved he'll have a bigger role than originally anticipated and can play both inside and outside, which allows the Bills to keep nine defensive linemen.

Linebacker:

Terrel Bernard, Dorian Williams, Edefuan Ulofoshio, Nicholas Morrow, and Joe Andreessen (5)

With Matt Milano's injury, the linebacker room is filled with much more uncertainty heading into the season. Williams will do his best to replace Milano as the starter opposite Terrel Bernard, but there isn't much clarity after that. Morrow is on my 53-man roster because of his NFL experience, which the Bills will covet. Ulofoshio's injury this summer didn't help his case at making the team, but the Bills will choose patience with a player they just drafted.

That brings us to Andreessen, who became the most talked about player in Western New York since the Steelers game. For the Lancaster native to be in this position is remarkable, but the story becomes even more unbelievable if he makes the 53. In my opinion, it comes down to Andreessen or Spector, with the edge going to Andreessen. The Bills like Spector, but he's been injured too often. I also believe the team would have a better chance getting Spector on their practice squad than Andreessen.

That said, linebacker is also a position I could see the team addressing with a trade or free-agent addition after cut-down day. I'm not expecting it, but it wouldn't be a shock.

Cornerback:

Taron Johnson, Rasul Douglas, Christian Benford, Kaiir Elam, Ja'Marcus Ingram, Cam Lewis, and Daequan Hardy (7)

When training camp started I wouldn't have guessed my final 53-man roster would have both Lewis and Hardy on it. But Hardy has emerged as their best returning option and also made some nice plays on defense both at nickel cornerback and on the boundary.

Lewis had an even more impressive camp and showed tons of position flexibility with snaps at cornerback and safety. Combine that with his special teams abilities and he feels like a lock.

The other surprise from the group has been the emergence of Ja'Marcus Ingram. He has had a strong camp and preseason and has earned a job. He and Elam are a nice pair of backup cornerbacks to play behind Douglas and Benford.

Safety:

Taylor Rapp, Mike Edwards, Cole Bishop, and Damar Hamlin (4)

After weeks of injuries, the Bills are finally getting healthier at safety. Edwards and Bishop are getting back to practice and Hamlin appears closer to a return than we originally thought.

At this rate, I'm expecting Rapp and Edwards to be the Week 1 starters barring any setbacks. I think the team will do what they can to get Bishop on the field and can utilize him in dime formation with six defensive backs on the field.

I still think the team is holding out hope that Micah Hyde will return, but I don't think it will happen until the regular season begins. Maybe it's something or maybe it's nothing, but the team hasn't given out Hyde's No. 23 to any of the new players.

Specialists:

Tyler Bass, Sam Martin, and Reid Ferguson (3)

Bass has had an inconsistent training camp but the team doesn't have a better option. He finished the preseason six-for-seven on field goal attempts with his lone miss being a 51-yard attempt.

As for Sam Martin, he seemingly won the punting job before the preseason even started. But I could see the team calling Jack Browning back as an insurance policy for their practice squad.