Jim Lang

Jim Lang is a Connected anchor and NFL reporter for Sportsnet. Also check out Jim's website, www.jimlang.ca

Trent Edwards made a great throw to Lee Evans for a 70-yard touchdown.

Preseason football in the NFL is what it is. But as far as preseason football goes, Thursday night's game at Rogers Centre in Toronto between the Bills and the Colts was actually fairly exciting.

The game featured long bombs, touchdown runs, Peyton Manning, a beer snake and too many empty seats. The organizers for the Bills Toronto Series can only hope that the regular-season game on Nov. 7 against the Bears will end up being a sellout.

That's a discussion for another day. Today, it is all about the game on the field. Now as much as I still think the Bills should have drafted an offensive tackle in the first round, running back C.J. Spiller is beginning to look like a special talent. Only a few running backs have the kind of speed and moves to pull off what Spiller did on his 31-yard touchdown run.

With Fred Jackson and Marshawn Lynch still nursing injuries, Spiller will continue to get more reps in practice and a lot more playing time in the Bills next preseason game on the 28th against the Bengals. If Spiller can keep making guys miss like he did on that touchdown run, all of a sudden opposing defences will have to start game-planning for the rookie. He's beginning to look like the kind of running back that you don't want in open space if you're an opposing defence. Once Spiller gets out into the open, he is very dangerous.

If you are a Bills fans, you should also be impressed with Trent Edwards' 70-yard touchdown heave to Lee Evans. Working his play action to perfection, Edwards froze the safety then hit Evans in stride with his best throw in a long time.

Manning admitted to us after the game that the Colts offence wasn't totally in sync and he wasn't happy with some of the mistakes they made. Manning and the Colts offence was still good enough to march down the field on a seven-play, 63-yard touchdown drive in the first quarter. It was the kind of drive that makes you realize when Manning decides he's going to march the ball down the field, there are very few defences in the NFL that can stop him.

What really stood out to me were all the scouts that were in attendance. Scouts from 15 different NFL teams were on hand, keenly watching every second of the game.

NFL scouts have a variety of tools with them when they watch a game. In front of the scouts you will see a stop watch, a play chart and for a lot them a Dictaphone. The scouts literally dictate notes to themselves throughout the entire game. Afterward they will end up filing a detailed game report to their respective teams.

I spoke to the Ravens scout at the game and with all the injuries Baltimore has suffered at cornerback, it is no secret what GM Ozzie Newsome is in the market for. Like all the scouts on hand, the Ravens scout is also looking at players that might be cut but could end up helping their team.

Now if there is one asset the Bills have to use in a potential trade, it's at cornerback. Leodis McKelvin looked solid in coverage and made a smart play, knocking down a Manning pass. Backup safety Ashton Youboty made a number of good plays and broke up two passes. The start of the show was veteran corner Terrence McGee after he made a play on a tipped pass and returned it 78 yards for a touchdown.

After a game like that, Bills GM Buddy Nix should let be known around the NFL that if a team is in need of a cornerback to give him a call. The Bills need help at offensive tackle and there are teams around the league with linemen they would be willing to deal.

Funniest moment of the night: Near the end of the game, I was standing with a group of media waiting to speak with Manning and the Colts. Next to me was stand-up comic and funny guy for The Score, Gerry Dee. Wouldn't you know it? Some drunken hooligan decides to run onto the field just before the end of the game. As he was being led away in handcuffs by two very large policemen, the guy looks up and says, "Hey, it's Gerry Dee!"