The Buffalo Bills have their first preseason game in just a couple of hours. They are set to take on the Carolina Panthers. The game starts at 7 pm and is a home game for the Buffalo Bills.

The biggest position battle that will have just about everyone’s eye is that of the quarterbacks. Matt Cassel is the favorite and is scheduled to start tonight for the Buffalo Bills. Cassel is the safe bet but he is not one to protect the ball either. Cassel is just under a .500 percent when it comes to touchdowns to interceptions.

Tyrod Taylor has been improving each and every day in practice and has seemed to pass EJ Manual on the depth charts. Taylor has the unknown excitement to him that everybody wants to see what the 6th round pick has in him from sitting behind Joe Flacco for 4 years as well as what Rex Ryan saw in him to covet him so much.

EJ Manuel has only really had two good days in training camp and has been on a down-slide for most of training camp. It seems as though his time may be up here in Buffalo and he may just get beat out by Matt Simms, the way things are going. I hope that I am wrong and something turns on for him and he gets on track but the way things are going it does not look good for the 16th overall pick from the 2013 draft.

Past the quarterback competition, a couple of other guys to keep your eyes on for the Buffalo Bills would be some of the rookies. Karlos Williams will be getting a shot to show what he can do in the backfield. With both Fred Jackson and Anthony Dixon out for at least another week, minimally, he will get a shot to outshine Bryce Brown and make this team.

Another rookie to watch out for is John Miller. The offensive line has been a struggling point for the Buffalo Bills for a couple of years now. Miller has shown that he is the real deal in practice and camp, but how well will he hold up when the lights are on. With the left side of the line pretty much locked up and Miller holding the right guard spot down, the only real viable spot left on the offensive line is that of right tackle, which seems to have Seantrel Henderson back as the favorite.

Ronald Darby is probably the last more notable rookie to keep a watch on as he will be starting across the field from Stephon Gilmore on his own island and will look to shut down his side of the field and take advantage of Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers.

As far as the Carolina Panthers are concerned, Cam Newton is leading in a team that, on offense, looks to be better than last year. They have made upgrades on their offensive line and with the running back carrying momentum from the end of the season last year, they could be a playoff contender this year.

Their linebacking corps is also one of the better one in the league with Luke Kuechly and Thomas Davis leading the way with a decent defensive backfield that could give even the best quarterbacks issues.

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