Although this was just the second game of preseason, Buffalo Bills coach Sean McDermott and his team looked ill-prepared in Thursday’s matchup versus the Philadelphia Eagles.

The Bills showed the regular symptoms of preseason football and struggled to move the ball early, scoring just six points in the first half, finishing with 16.

There weren’t many highlights from the game, but there is be plenty for McDermott and company to chew on with just two preseason games remaining.

Tyrod Taylor pressured early and often

Coach McDermott stated earlier this week that most of the starters would play around a quarter or so of the game. Despite that, it wasn’t enough for Bills starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor to get a couple clean series of work in.

Taylor couldn’t buy more than a second in the pocket and ended up being sacked twice.

Left tackle Seantrel Henderson was the victim multiple times. He got worked by Eagles edge rushers and is slowly erasing his name from the final roster after his poor performance in back-to-back weeks.

The Eagles did something on Thursday that Taylor and offensive coordinator Rick Dennison will need to prepare for in the regular season. Philadelphia opted for six men in the box to pressure Taylor. It did this because Buffalo doesn’t have a wide receiver with speed who can beat a defensive back before the pressure gets to Taylor, who is then forced to rush a throw.

Taylor finished his day 8-of-18 for 53 yards and two interceptions. One was to Ronald Darby, who returned for 48 yards almost a week after being traded by the Bills.

LeSean McCoy in 2016 form

One of the biggest positives on Buffalo’s offense was running back LeSean McCoy. Although he only had four rushes for 21 yards, he showed he is again ready to be a top running back in 2017.

On McCoy’s first run, he made a quick juke on Darby, leaving the former Buffalo Bill in his dust on a 13-yard run.

McCoy is coming into this season with Buffalo in a very different situation than the last two. The Bills shipped wide receiver Sammy Watkins off to the Los Angeles Rams last week, leaving McCoy as one of the only players on the offense that can frighten an opposing defense.

A lot of pressure will be on McCoy’s shoulders this season. The ninth-year player is tasked with carrying the offense while again looking to finish as a top-10 rusher in the NFL.

Penalties still an issue

Ed Hochuli and his officials made some questionable calls and proved the referees need preseason work as well. Fifteen penalties are just unacceptable in any game.

Buffalo was called for 12 just penalties in the first half. It finished with 15 penalties adding up to 131 yards.

McDermott said this about the penalties heading into halftime, “Second week in a row. Can’t do that to ourselves.”

The officials may need to ice their shoulders after this game, and Buffalo needs to hone in on the self-inflicted mistakes. Penalties were a thing of Rex Ryan’s teams and cannot carry into McDermott’s.

Nathan Peterman shines

The Bills’ fifth-round pick looked cool and collected on nearly every throw.

The rookie quarterback recognized mismatches often. He found Zay Jones along the sidelines for 22 yards before the half and Rod Streater for 28 yards in the third quarter.

Multiple times Peterman read the defense well to make smart throws. Peterman looked much better than fellow quarterback T.J. Yates and reaffirmed Buffalo’s decision to move Peterman ahead of him as the No. 2 quarterback on the depth chart.

Run defense stout

The Bills’ run defense was in form Thursday night and held the Eagles to just 66 rushing yards. Buffalo looked far different than in 2016 when it was No. 29 against the run and had players in the backfield multiple times.

The switch back to the 4-3 could be a major reason the Bills step up their rushing defense this year. The 4-3 frees up the front four to focus on attacking the run, as they have done in the past with great success.

Another positive for the defense: it didn’t allow a third-down conversion for the first three quarters. The Eagles finished 2-for-12 in third-down efficiency, much of which was attributed to early run stops that forced Philadelphia into long-yardage situations on second and third down.

Zay Jones showcases talents

With 45 seconds remaining in the first half, Nathan Peterman hit fellow rookie Zay Jones for a 22-yard tow tap sideline catch.

The next play, Peterman again targeted the wide receiver on a fade in the end zone. Jones made the catch again but stepped out of bounds with his second foot by inches, forcing the Bills to convert a field goal to end the first half. Still, the chemistry there was clearly.

Jones looked tremendous after not receiving a single target in the preseason opener. Jones showcased his quick cuts and his great hands.

With Jordan Matthews and Anquan Boldin heading up the receiving depth chart for Week 1 vs the New York Jets, Jones is the quickest of the three and could see a lot of time working on the outside. Buffalo is still trying to figure out who could be the deep threat that takes the top off the defense. Jones is looking as good as advertised and should see a lot of playing time in 2017.

Still lots of work ahead

Thursday’s game in Philadelphia showed the Bills still have their work cut out for them.

With any first-year coach, you don’t expect the success to come immediately and this game definitely brought Buffalo back to reality. The Bills finished the game with an unacceptable amount of penalties and looked sloppy throughout all 60 minutes.

Although training camp may be over, Buffalo needs to value every remaining practice. There is a lot to learning ahead for the newcomers to the franchise and not a lot of time.

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