Sean McDermott: Too early to say if Josh Allen will play against Bears in preseason
Sean McDermott wants the Bills quarterback to stay safe during the preseason. The coach even joked about keeping him in a bubble if he could.
It’s too early for Buffalo Bills coach Sean McDermott to say if quarterback Josh Allen will play against the Chicago Bears on Sunday.
McDermott spoke ahead of Friday’s joint practice with the Bears in Chicago, saying he wanted the practice to further evaluate.
Bills quarterback Josh Allen greets flag football athletes after halftime against the New York Giants on Aug. 9.
Harry Scull Jr., Buffalo News
“No, and then just as it relates to (Friday) and then play time overall, I would just tell you, I’ve gotta get through – we’ve gotta get through – this practice, go home, or go back to the hotel … go through the injury report and then reset the table for the game on Sunday night,” McDermott said.
For Allen, McDermott wants the quarterback to stay safe during the preseason. The coach even joked about keeping him in a bubble if he could. McDermott would “love to” give Allen some preseason time, if he could guarantee the franchise quarterback wouldn’t get hurt.
“In Josh’s case, (we’re) really using practice to see where he’s at and how he feels,” McDermott said. “And I’m giving him some ownership as well, which I think is important. He knows by now what he needs to be ready.”
McDermott acknowledged that Allen still needs time with “healthy receivers” as the Bills have dealt with a number of injuries in the wide receiver room.
McDermott said he wasn’t necessarily evaluating on a unit-by-unit basis, but rather on an individual level.
“We’re probably going to have a few young players who maybe play well today and look good, but they need more time, they need more reps, more experience,” McDermott said. “So, it’ll probably end up on a case-by-case, player-by-player basis in terms of how we evaluate the play time.”
Bills running back James Cook is set to be available if needed for this preseason game against the Bears after he warmed up for the first preseason game against the New York Giants, but then did not play in the game.
With Cook getting the contract extension he sought on Thursday, his hold-in is now over – a sigh of relief for McDermott.
“If you study hold-ins over the years, it’s not good for teams, right, in terms of records and things,” McDermott said. “So, the sooner we could get things done, the more satisfied I was going to be. Certainly understanding things take some time once in a while. But, part of my job is to limit and eliminate distractions for our football team.”
Plus, Katherine and Lance get you ready for the Bills preseason game on Sunday in Chicago. The Bills QB battle continues, the receivers are banged up and the Bears starters are looking to earn their spot with a new coach watching.
With Cook’s contract situation over, McDermott could look ahead to the practices at hand. Friday’s joint practice at Halas Hall came at exactly the right time for the Bills. This is the second year in a row that the Bills have traveled for a joint practice. Last preseason, they went to Pittsburgh to practice against the Steelers before playing them the same week.
“It’s usually about this time of training camp where guys get tired of beating on each other, and sometimes with that, either fights break out or the intensity dips a little bit, so it’s a good time and place for us to go against another opponent, especially on the road,” McDermott said. “In doing so, we come together a little more as a team, hang out a little more over the course of the trip, and then we can see where we’re at a little bit more as a team.”
McDermott spoke to the team ahead of practice about how chippy joint practices can be across the league.
McDermott said during training camp in Pittsford that he was looking for a more physical team and the team responding accordingly. Now, he’s looking for the team to “get more crusty.” The goal was to take another step in Chicago, and joint practices lend to that goal.
“It’s a physical sport, it’s going to be physical,” McDermott said. “From what I hear, it was rather physical against the Dolphins when they were out here, so I would say that we should probably expect the same.”
