
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PIT | 14 | 0 | 7 | 6 | 27 |
| BUF | 3 | 7 | 7 | 11 | 28 |
Ian Wheeler's 2-yard rush with 1:06 left in the fourth quarter, followed by a Shane Buechele two-point conversion pass, lifted the Buffalo Bills to a 28-27 preseason win over the Pittsburgh Steelers at Highmark Stadium. Pittsburgh had led 27-17 entering the final stages after Kaden Wetjen's 45-yard punt return touchdown at 11:11 of the fourth extended the margin. Tyler Bass cut it to 27-20 with a 42-yard field goal at 6:17, setting up Wheeler's decisive score. The Steelers had controlled much of the contest, building a 21-10 lead through three quarters on touchdowns from Germie Bernard, Lake McRee, and Eli Heidenreich, before Buffalo's fourth-quarter eleven-point swing closed it out.
With no standings or bracket implications attached to a Week 3 preseason game, the result carries weight chiefly in what the performances suggest about roster competition. Buffalo demonstrated the capacity to manufacture points with backup personnel in a genuine two-minute situation, converting a go-ahead touchdown and a two-point try under pressure. Shane Buechele's 26-of-38, 196-yard evening gave Bills coaches a sustained look at their depth quarterback, while the ground contributors — Wheeler, Frank Gore Jr., and Skyler Bell — each logged meaningful touches. Pittsburgh's Will Howard threw for two touchdowns but also threw an interception, leaving his own evaluation with mixed evidence heading into final roster cuts.
AUTO-GENERATED FROM MATCH DATA · 22:05 ET| PLAYER | LINE | FPTS |
|---|---|---|
| Skyler Bell | 1 att, 28 yds, TD · 7 rec, 49 yds | 20.7 |
| Frank Gore Jr. | 10 att, 27 yds, TD · 5 rec, 45 yds | 18.2 |
| Ian Wheeler | 9 att, 23 yds, TD · 2 rec, 10 yds | 11.3 |
| Eli Heidenreich | 9 att, 35 yds, TD | 9.5 |
| Shane Buechele | 26/38, 196 yds · 4 att, 11 yds · 1 rec, -4 yds | 9.5 |
Both squads, ranked by the same scoring module the draft sim uses. Kickers and defenders are absent from this table on purpose - that module scores field goals without distances and defensive plays without points allowed, so their totals are short by a known amount and do not belong in a ranking.
| PLAYER | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | RTG | FPTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Will Howard | 9/15 | 69 | 4.6 | 2 | 1 | 83.1 | 8.8 |
| Drew Allar | 9/18 | 88 | 4.9 | 0 | 0 | 64.1 | 3.5 |
| PLAYER | ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | FPTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eli Heidenreich | 9 | 35 | 3.9 | 1 | 9 | 9.5 |
| Lew Nichols III | 7 | 40 | 5.7 | 0 | 11 | 4.0 |
| Kaleb Johnson | 5 | 11 | 2.2 | 0 | 6 | 1.1 |
| Travis Homer | 2 | 11 | 5.5 | 0 | 6 | 1.1 |
| PLAYER | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | FPTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Germie Bernard | 1 | 13 | 13.0 | 1 | 13 | 8.3 |
| Max Hurleman | 3 | 50 | 16.7 | 0 | 25 | 8.0 |
| Lake McRee | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 1 | 5 | 7.5 |
| Lance Mason | 3 | 31 | 10.3 | 0 | 13 | 6.1 |
| Cornell Powell | 3 | 23 | 7.7 | 0 | 16 | 5.3 |
| Brandon Smith | 2 | 4 | 2.0 | 0 | 4 | 2.4 |
| Lew Nichols III | 1 | 13 | 13.0 | 0 | 13 | 2.3 |
| Kaden Wetjen | 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 0 | 7 | 1.7 |
| Riley Nowakowski | 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 0 | 7 | 1.7 |
| Jaheim Bell | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 0 | 2 | 1.2 |
| Travis Homer | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 0 | 2 | 1.2 |
| Jakobie KeeneJames | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Levi Wentz | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| PLAYER | FG | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Boswell | 0/0 | 0 | 3/3 | 3 |
Stat groups appear only when something happened in them - a night with no interceptions has no interceptions table. The volt tick marks the game leader.