Bills stock watch after preseason opener: Laviska Shenault, Tyrell Shavers rising

The Buffalo Bills lost their preseason opener 34-25 to the New York Giants, but the scoreboard mattered less than the spotlight.

Buffalo’s biggest stars didn’t see any action. Josh Allen and James Cook suited up but didn’t play. The quarterback got the day off and the running back is protesting his contract. Khalil Shakir was out while recovering from a high ankle sprain.

The Bills played most of their starters in the first quarter and there was still plenty of intrigue to assess how the Bills will round out their roster.

Here’s a stock watch after the first game.

Stock up:

WR Laviska Shenault: Strong kick returns, 2-point conversion
WR Tyrell Shavers: 58-yard catch, lead team in receiving
LB Keonta Jenkins: Led team in tackles
DT Deone Walker: Batted pass, stout at the line
DE Joey Bosa: Flashed disruption in limited reps

Stock down:

TE Zach Davidson: Drops and missed deep ball
TE Jackson Hawes: Missed chance to separate in TE battle
OL Mike Edwards: Gave up a quick sack
DE Landon Jackson: Offside wiped out INT
WR Curtis Samuel – Still sidelined; other wide receivers stepping up

If Shenault makes the team it’ll be because of his versatility. Buffalo doesn’t have a clear-cut return specialist and four different players returned kicks or punts against the Giants. Shenault had the best return average on both, averaging 31 yards on two kickoff returns and taking one punt for 7 yards. He also had one catch for 17 yards and added a 2-point conversion reception from Mike White to give Buffalo a 25-24 lead in the fourth quarter.

The sixth-year wide receiver is a former second-round pick and had at least 600 yards receiving in his first two seasons in the league with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Shavers makes plays whenever he’s on the field. Instead of running out the clock with 15 seconds left in the first half, Buffalo took a shot downfield. Shavers sped past cornerback O’Donnell Fortune and caught a 58-yard pass from Mitchell Trubisky to the Giants’ 6-yard line. Shavers would’ve scored if Trubisky didn’t slightly underthrow him. Buffalo kicked a field goal before halftime. Shavers finished with two catches for a team-high 70 yards.

Trubisky and Shavers have an established connection. Shavers took a screen pass 69 yards for a touchdown on his first career target in a Week 17 rout over the New York Jets last season.

Based on production alone, Shavers should make the Bills’ roster. The Bills have some decisions to make behind Khalil Shakir, Joshua Palmer and Keon Coleman.

The undrafted rookie shook off a hand laceration to lead the Bills with six tackles and a quarterback hit.

Jenkins should get a lot of reps in the preseason. Starter Terrel Bernard, Dorian Williams and Shaq Thompson all missed the preseason game, and Buffalo released Baylon Spector last week. Jenkins outplayed second-year linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio, the Bills’ 2024 fifth-round pick who had six tackles in four games last year.

Jenkins played five seasons at Virginia Tech and was used as a defensive back and linebacker. He Jenkins recorded 182 tackles, three interceptions, 2.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, nine passes defensed and 21.5 tackles for loss in 57 games with 34 starts.

Walker is enormous, and while the rookie fourth-round pick didn’t register a tackle, he won the battle at the line of scrimmage and batted down a pass.

Bosa showed how he can be a major disruptor when healthy. He got pressure on multiple snaps in limited action, including when he and Ed Oliver collapsed the pocket and Oliver batted down a pass on the first possession of the game.

Aug 9, 2025; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills tight end Zach Davidson (84) tries to make a catch against New York Giants safety Raheem Layne (43) in the second quarter at Highmark Stadium.

The 6-foot-7 tight end had a rough day on offense. Davidson tied for the team-lead with four targets but had one reception for 5 yards. In the second quarter, quarterback Mitchell Trubisky threw deep for Davidson, who beat Giants safety Raheem Layne. Davidson outran the throw and the ball bounced off his hands. In the third quarter, Davidson couldn’t handle a short pass over the middle from Mike White. Two plays later, Davidson shook off the miscue with a hustle play, sprinting downfield on punt coverage and barreling though returner Dee Williams for a tackle at the Giants’ 10-yard line.

Davidson, 27, is in his fourth season with the Bills, mostly on the practice squad. He was elevated to the active roster for three games in 2024.

He’s known more for his pass-catching skills than blocking, so cannot have letdowns in the receiving game if he hopes to fend off youngster Jackson Hawes.

Hawes didn’t take advantage of the opportunity in the tight end competition with Davidson struggling. The rookie dropped a pass from Mike White early in the third quarter.

Hawes, a 2025 fifth-round pick, is known as a bruiser in the blocking game and Bills coaches love his tenacity on the line of scrimmage. The third tight end behind Dawson Knox and Dalton Kincaid likely comes down to Davidson’s receiving ability versus Hawes’ youth and blocking skills, with the other joining the practice squad.

Reserve tight ends Keleki Latu and Matt Sokol each caught their only target. Bills coaches have lauded Latu, a 6-foot-7 and 244-pound undrafted rookie who had 40 catches last year at the University of Washington, for his work ethic and tenacity. Sokol, 29, has shown sure hands all training camp.

Edwards had a glaringly bad rep while giving up a sack three plays into the third quarter. The second-year offensive lineman barely got a hand on Giants nose tackle D.J. Davidson. who blew by him and tossed quarterback Mike White for an 8-yard sack.

Aug 9, 2025; Orchard Park, New York, USA; New York Giants running back Dante Miller (25) runs past Buffalo Bills defensive end Landon Jackson (94) in the second quarter at Highmark Stadium.

The rookie third-round pick was flagged for offsides in the third quarter, negating an interception by rookie defensive back Jordan Hancock against Giants quarterback Jameis Winston. Buffalo led 17-16 with 4:44 left in the third quarter and would’ve forced its first turnover of the game. Instead, Winston went on to covert a third-and-8 and led a touchdown drive along with a 2-point conversion to give put New York up 24-17.

Samuel hasn’t participated in team drills for most of training camp and continues working off to the side with trainers. If not for his $12.1 million dead cap hit in 2025, his status would be far more uncertain. In the meantime, young receivers like Tyrell Shavers, KJ Hamler, Kristian Wilkerson and Deon Cain are stacking good days.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Buffalo Bills preseason: Stock up, stock down after loss to NY Giants

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Bills stock watch after preseason opener: Laviska Shenault, Tyrell Shavers rising

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