Bears head coach Ben Johnson announced earlier this week that quarterback Caleb Williams and the rest of the team’s starters will play in Sunday’s preseason matchup with the Bills.
But before Buffalo started its joint practice with Chicago on Friday, Bills head coach Sean McDermott said he hadn’t quite determined playing time for this weekend.
“[J]ust 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, via Katherine Fitzgerald of The Buffalo News.
While McDermott joked he would keep Josh Allen in a bubble if he could, he also noted that he’d love to get Allen some playing time if he could guarantee the quarterback wouldn’t suffer an injury.
“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 noted he would like to get James Cook some playing time after the running back signed a contract extension earlier this week to end his hold-in. Between Cook and wanting Allen to get playing time with healthy receivers, there is some reason to play him this weekend.
But McDermott reiterated he’ll need to evaluate things after the joint practice.
“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.”
Kickoff between Chicago and Buffalo is set for 8 p.m. ET on Sunday night. The game will be nationally televised on Fox.
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