Anthony Lynn

Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn watches his team warm up before an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins Saturday, Dec. 24, 2016, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Bill Wippert)

(Bill Wippert)

Orchard Park, N.Y. -- Anthony Lynn is getting a one-game audition as the Buffalo Bills interim head coach, and he won't get to do it with the team's best quarterback.

After the Bills fired Rex Ryan, Lynn was elevated to interim coach for the Bills' Week 17 game against the New York Jets. The Bills will start EJ Manuel, not Tyrod Taylor for the game. Benching Taylor protects the Bills against an injury guarantee in Taylor's contract, which would cost the Bills north of $30 million if he can't pass a physical by March.

"It was a business decision," Lynn said in his first press conference Wednesday. "We want to look at the depth of our quarterback position, and we're out of the playoffs, so we want to see what the other two guys can do."

Late in the press conference, Lynn revealed he wasn't even in the room when the decision to bench Taylor came down.

"I don't know about that," Lynn said. "I wasn't in the meeting when that decision was made, so I don't know."

"That was not my decision, to not start Tyrod."

When pressed on the whether the decision had anything to do with the contract, Lynn deferred.

"I can't speak for the owner, I can't speak for the GM," Lynn said. "They have to speak for themselves."

They certainly do, and they haven't in quite some time. One thing for sure, Taylor isn't happy.

"Oh, disappointed," Lynn said. "He's a competitor. He wants to play, but he understands."