Report card: Buffalo Bills fall 34-25 in preseason vs. New York Giants

The Buffalo Bills lost their preseason opener, 35-24, against the New York Giants. Between the lines is what really matters in the exhibition season.

Players are looking to crack the final roster. Others already likely on it are vying for starting jobs.

A report card will help us find out which players ended up standing out and which parts of the roster.

Here is Bills Wire's report card following the team's loss to the Giants in Week 1 of the preseason:

Passing offense: B

The focus for the Bills' passing offense is the battle between Mitchell Trubisky vs. Mike White. Both of their numbers were saved by one big play. In the end, Trubisky was 9-for-13 for 138 yards and a touchdown. White was 8-for-13 with 112 yards and two touchdowns.

The wide receiver standing out the most amongst an injured group was Tyrell Shavers.

Rushing offense: C

There was nothing too special to write about about with Buffalo's rushing attack while the focus was on starter James Cook missing his team's first preseason game. Standing out was a short, quick spell from backup rusher Ty Johnson in the second quarter as he mustered up 26 rushing yards.

The Bills' highest-graded offensive linemen via Pro Football Focus marks were David Edwards (73.6) and Ryan Van Demark (64.0).

Pass defense: C

Not the best grade, but this could be for a variety of options... even though we're not looking to make excuses for the Bills.

Safeties Cole Bishop and Taylor Rapp not starting does not help. First-round rookie Maxwell Hairston missing hurts depth as well. On top of that, Buffalo's opponent has multiple players pushing for playing time as the starting quarterback for 2025... and the Giants were going to scheme up a bit of a game plan... while the Bills likely did not defensively.

Run defense: B+

The standout area of Buffalo's defense was the defensive front. The Giants got nothing going on the ground as Dante Miller led their ground attack with 22 rushing yards... on 10 carries.

But the D-line performed well against the pass, too. From veterans such as Joey Bosa to rookie Deone Walker, throws were being swatted and QBs

Coaching: C

The most credit head coach Sean McDermott will get is the one he made to not start Josh Allen. No reason to have the QB out there. However, his secondary was picked apart. No reason to think that can't change.

This article originally appeared on Bills Wire: Report card: Buffalo Bills fall 34-25 in preseason vs. New York Giants