The third preseason game for any NFL team is usually not met with much excitement.
Don’t tell that to Dane Jackson, though. The Buffalo Bills’ cornerback actually can’t wait for Saturday to arrive, so he can take the field against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Buffalo Bills New York Giants Preseason Football (copy)
Bills cornerback Dane Jackson has given up a pair of touchdown passes during the first two weeks of the preseason. Harry Scull Jr., Buffalo News
Jackson, 28, has good reason to be eager. He’s coming off a tough showing against the Chicago Bears on Sunday night, when the Bills, playing almost no starters, were roughed up in a 38-0 exhibition loss. Jackson surely would like to get that bad taste out of his mouth.
“Just got to get better in a lot of areas, individually and collectively,” he said after the Bills returned to the practice field Tuesday at their Orchard Park headquarters. “We’ve got more opportunities to go out there and improve on what you feel like you need to get better at, or just keep building on what you already know.”
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Jackson returned to the Bills this offseason after one year away. He spent last season with Carolina after the first four years of his NFL career were in Buffalo. His one-year deal to return counts $1.337 million against the salary cap, and includes $567,500 in guaranteed money ($167,500 signing bonus, plus $400,000 of his $1.17 million base salary).
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It is not a massive investment, but it shows the Bills were counting on Jackson to compete for a depth spot at cornerback. With first-round draft pick Maxwell Hairston on the injured list and with no timetable for a return, positional depth at cornerback is an important focus this preseason.
“Dane is a guy that has played a lot of snaps for us,” Bills coach Sean McDermott said Tuesday. “We’ve got a lot of belief in Dane. He’s one of our guys, right? You know, smart, tough, good football player overall, and he competes every day like it’s his last. He’s done that since the first day he came in as a rookie here, so he continues to show us that on the field.”
Jackson and McDermott formed a close relationship during the cornerback’s first tour of duty in Buffalo, which started as a seventh-round draft pick in 2021. He ended up starting 28 games and appearing in 52 in the regular season over four years, making three interceptions and 28 passes defended.
Jackson jumped at the opportunity to come back to the Bills after one injury-plagued season with the Panthers.
The results in the preseason, however, have been shaky.
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In the opener against the Giants, Jackson was targeted six times and allowed four catches for 61 yards and a touchdown, according to analytics website Pro Football Focus.
Against the Bears on Sunday, he allowed two catches on three targets for 19 yards and another touchdown. He has an overall grade of 36.0, which ranks 176th out of 183 cornerbacks who have played at least 25 defensive snaps during the preseason.
“Just knowing that you’ve got another opportunity to go out there and fix it, that’s the most important part,” he said. “I’m enjoying the competition. I’m enjoying being around my brothers, enjoying being here in Buffalo, seeing everybody. I’m just taking it day by day and see how everything goes.”
With Hairston’s status for the start of the regular season very much in question, it looks as though Christian Benford and Tre’Davious White will be the Week 1 starters. After that, Jackson is in competition with rookie Dorian Strong and returning veteran Ja’Marcus Ingram to provide depth on the roster.
“Nobody has an ego. We’re just out there competing every single day, trying to get better, pushing each other,” Jackson said.
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