1 – Storylines to follow for Bills-Browns tonight
The voice of Buffalo Bills preseason football, Andrew Catalon, is entering his fourth season of Bills preseason football, and his eighth season working for CBS Sports. Catalon has certainly seen and announced his fair share of Bills football, and he offered his thoughts on tonight's matchup between the Browns and the Bills.
"I am really excited for the game, there are so many storylines to follow; including Tyrod Taylor and Corey Coleman," said Catalon. "There's a lot to watch for in this game."
Taylor was, of course, traded to the Browns in exchange for a 2018 third-round pick on March 9th of this year; and Coleman was dealt from Cleveland to Buffalo this past week for a seventh-round pick in 2020. Although the Bills 2017 quarterback is now with the Browns, Catalon noted that he believes the most important thing to watch for is the Bills' current quarterback battle.
"With the Bills, the quarterbacks are the big story," he said. "I want to see who separates themselves from the others."
The Bills' starter for the game has not yet been announced, but in practices leading up to tonight's game, A.J. McCarron took most of the first team reps, Josh Allen spent his time with the second team, and Nathan Peterman took his reps with the third team after starting the team's first preseason game against Carolina.
"I am very optimistic about this Buffalo season," said Catalon.
Photos of the Buffalo Bills as they make their way to Cleveland to take on the Browns in a 2018 Preseason Week 2 matchup.
2 – Browns reporter dishes on Mayfield, others
Cleveland Browns beat writer Mary Kay Cabot has established herself as one of the best reporters in the NFL, and she has recently been gearing up for tonight's matchup. Coming into the second preseason contest for both teams, Cabot speculated about what fans should watch for from the Browns side of things.
"Well their [Browns] starters didn't play very much in the first game, only about eight snaps," said Cabot. "I think they want to get a longer look at Tyrod Taylor with his receivers, and his skill players."
Perhaps the biggest story surrounding the Browns in the preseason is the buzz around the first overall selection in this year's draft, Baker Mayfield. Mayfield played well in the Browns' first action of the season, but Cabot says the Browns still need to see more from the former Oklahoma Sooner.
"They want to see continued progress from Baker Mayfield," she said. "They were very encouraged from what they saw from him in first game, but now they would like to see a little bit more of that."
The sentiment regarding Mayfield should sound awfully similar, as many have a similar hope for Josh Allen. Allen played well in his first action, but he wants to do what Sean McDermott preached throughout training camp, continually improve.
3 – Peterman looking forward to game number two
After starting in the Bills' first preseason game last Thursday, quarterback Nathan Peterman wants to continue to show the coaching staff why he believes that he should be the Bills starting quarterback in Week 1 of the regular season. Peterman says that he believes that he has taken steps towards that starting job throughout the team's training camp at St. John Fisher.
"I think that I have improved a lot," he said. "That is what training camp is for, just getting better every day; and I just have to keep taking steps."
Peterman completed all but one of his passes in his start against the Panthers, leaving many to believe what he can improve upon as he faces off against the Browns tonight. He noted the importance of continually striving to improve, even when it seems there is little room for such improvement.
"I just want to go out there and execute," said Peterman. "I want to make the right plays when I need to, protect the football, and lead the team down to score. That's the job of your quarterback, and that is what I will be focused on."
Although he is focused on his own game, Peterman also talked about what it would be like to see his former teammate, Tyrod Taylor, with another team for the first time since the trade between the Browns and the Bills.
"We texted a little bit this summer, he is a great dude," Peterman said. "I am looking forward to seeing him."
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