Bills QB Josh Allen, first-teamers will play in preseason opener

PITTSFORD, N.Y. -- The wait to see quarterback Josh Allen play with the revamped Buffalo Bills offense will be short. Coach Sean McDermott announced on Thursday that Allen and the first team will play about a quarter on Saturday against the Chicago Bears (1 p.m. ET).

"It's really, to me, it's getting them ramped up and ready to go for the season," McDermott said. "It's an important step, hard to simulate the speed of the game and so getting that in preseason is important, going through warmups and the energy that comes with playing a game in front of fans, and being able to manage that. So, there's a lot of reasons for it, like I said, it's just another step."

The game is expected to be notable for its quarterback play with No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams trending toward seeing his first preseason action, but that has not yet been announced.

In 2023, Allen did not play in the first preseason game, but he did play three series in the second preseason game and briefly in the third.

"We'll just take it one week at a time," McDermott said on Allen's preseason play time. "So, you know, there's a number of new faces on our offense also, including his receiving corps and so some of that is baked into this. But the biggest thing is individually we've got to get ourselves ready to go and go from there."

The Bills will be without several players for the game due to injuries, but playing against the Bears will be the first opportunity to see how some of the new additions to the offense, such as rookie wide receiver Keon Coleman, look in a game setting. Among the offensive players dealing with injuries are running back Ty Johnson (hamstring), and wide receivers Chase Claypool (toe), Justin Shorter (knee), Mack Hollins (leg) and KJ Hamler (undisclosed).

Allen did not feel strongly about whether he plays when asked about it before the decision was shared Thursday.

"I don't feel it makes a difference for me at this point in my career," Allen said Wednesday on potentially playing in the preseason. "To get things rolling would be nice but I understand not getting out there and making sure that we're being healthy and being protective. Again, it's a double-edged sword any way you look at it. If I'm asked to play, I'll play. If I'm told not to play, I won't play. So, the competitive juices in me want to play, but I understand Week 1 -- we still got some time."