None of that means much for Thursday, though. Preseason finales are roster-bubble games now — Rodgers, Allen and the rest of the household names figure to watch most of this one from the sideline, with their real work already logged in joint practices. That leaves the actual snaps to guys fighting for a 53-man spot: Pittsburgh's crowded receiver room behind DK Metcalf, where Michael Pittman and rookie Germie Bernard are trying to prove they belong, and a Bills WR3 battle where Keon Coleman is auditioning behind DJ Moore and Khalil Shakir in what's being called a make-or-break camp for him.
For Pittsburgh, this is also a chance to see how the running back timeshare shakes out — Rico Dowdle and Jaylen Warren, who reported to camp at a career-low 205 pounds, are being built as a true 1-2 punch rather than a clear starter and backup. Buffalo, meanwhile, gets a look at Dalton Kincaid, who added muscle over the offseason and says the knee he played through last year finally feels normal. Neither storyline moves the season one way or the other by itself, but for coaches still auditioning their depth charts, an exhibition game like this is exactly where those battles get settled.
The bigger picture is what makes this one worth even a passing glance: a healthy, energized Rodgers trying to squeeze one last run out of Pittsburgh, and an Allen-led Bills team that's been told by nearly everyone outside the building that this is finally the year. Neither quarterback is likely to break a sweat Thursday, but the roster battles playing out around them will matter a lot more in September than anything on this particular scoreboard.