Special teams play and the battle for the final spots on the roster will be the overwhelming focus of to-night’s football exhibition at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

The Buffalo Bills and Detroit Lions will give their starting players very limited playing time as they strive to keep their veterans healthy for the regular-season openers next weekend.

Bills coach Dick Jauron suggested the Bills’ starters, including quarterback Trent Edwards, might get a series or two of action. But he did not commit to the fact that they would even play at all. Expect receiver Terrell Owens to sit out, and maybe Lee Evans, too.

So the most compelling action might be on the kicking plays.

Most backup players in the NFL have to be contributors on special teams—particularly at receiver, linebacker and defensive back. The ability to produce on the bomb squads will be the big factor in deciding the final dozen or so roster positions. The coaches must trim the roster from 75 to 53 men by Saturday.

The veteran backups who are core special teamers for the Bills include Justin Jenkins, Jon Corto, George Wilson, John Wendling, Corey McIntyre and Copeland Bryan. A couple of them, at least, are sure to make the squad.

Jauron acknowledged the final spots are up for grabs tonight.

“There will be a lot of guys on the field that are playing for spots,” Jauron said. “And we try to stress that fact to them and not just with our club. They’re auditioning for the whole league whenever they get onto the field. And special teams are critical to every team’s ability to win. So we’ve made a point of it, and it’s the truth, so they should take it to heart.”

It would not be a surprise if a higher priced backup got moved off the roster by Saturday. There has been speculation all offseason about another team bidding to acquire receiver Roscoe Parrish. However, at this point that prospect seems evapo-

rated. If some team were going to make a quality trade offer for Parrish, it probably would have happened by now.

One veteran who could be on the bubble is defensive end Ryan Denney, because the Bills have more depth on the defensive line than last season.

Here’s a look at the roster battles at each position, starting with defense, which has the most interesting calls (the number of players kept at each spot last year is in parentheses):

Defensive line (9): The starters are Aaron Schobel, Marcus Stroud, Kyle Williams and Chris Kelsay. Locked in as backups are Aaron Maybin, Spencer Johnson, Chris Ellis and John McCargo. Denney and Bryan are the next two. Many teams keep eight, not nine.

Denney could be vulnerable because of the addition of Maybin and the fact the Bills have used Johnson at end some this preseason. Johnson may be able to flex to end a tad more this year because McCargo is healthy. Denney is scheduled to make $2.4 million in base pay.

Linebacker (6): The starters are Kawika Mitchell, Paul Posluszny and Keith Ellison. Rookie Nic Harris is set as the strong-side backup.

Corto would seem safe as a primary special teamer. Ashlee Palmer, an undrafted rookie, played ahead of second-year man Alvin Bowen all summer on the weak side until spraining an ankle. Palmer is back now. That could be a close call.

Marcus Buggs has been the backup to Posluszny all summer. But the Bills have given Ellison some repetitions in the middle in practice. They could use Ellison in the middle in a pinch if Poz gets hurt in a game, while keeping Buggs on the practice squad. Don’t rule out an acquisition off the waiver wire if it’s a veteran they like. Jauron kept seven LBs in 2006 and ’07.

Defensive back (10): The starters are Terrence McGee, Leodis McKelvin, Donte Whitner and Bryan Scott. Reggie Corner is the third corner. The Bills have three other good-looking corners in Drayton Florence, Ashton Youboty and rookie Ellis Lankster. It’s the deepest spot on the team.

Lankster, a seventh-round pick, has been the rookie surprise. Florence has been out the past three weeks with a sprained knee and could miss another couple weeks. The Bills cut veteran Will James last year, but Florence had a good camp before getting hurt and is better than James.

Many teams keep only four safeties. The Bills kept five the past two years. Jairus Byrd, the second-round draft pick, is starter-in-waiting at free safety. He’s a lock. Wendling is an ace special teamer but has not shown much at safety. George Wilson is an ace special teamer and a high-character locker-room influence. But will the Bills keep three free safeties?

Ko Simpson has been used as the third safety in the “big DB” package, when opponents go to one wideout. That helps his cause. Wendling, Wilson, Simpson: Two of the three probably make it. Do the Bills keep 11 DBs and eight defensive linemen or 10 DBs and nine defensive linemen?

Quarterback (3): The Bills’ three are Trent Edwards, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Gibran Hamdan.

Receiver (6): The starters are Evans and Owens. Josh Reed is No. 3, followed by Stevie Johnson and Parrish. Jenkins is an ace gunner. He seems like a lock. That’s six. The seventh is James Hardy, who has not yet returned to practice. He’s still just shy of eight months removed from knee surgery.

It’s likely the Bills will put Hardy on the reserve- physically unable to perform list. He would be eligible to return to practice after six weeks, and the Bills would have until Week 10 to activate him.

Tight end (3): The top three are Derek Schouman, Derek Fine and rookie Shawn Nelson. Fine has a sore hamstring. Jonathan Stupar has a great chance to stick as the fourth TE. Stupar leads the team in preseason catches with 15.

Offensive line (9): The starters are Langston Walker, Eric Wood, Geoff Hangartner, Andy Levitre and Brad Butler. Demetrius Bell is the third tackle. Kirk Chambers can play guard or tackle. Seth McKinney can play guard or center.

The Bills kept eight in 2007. Eight seems like the right number this year. Jonathan Scott is the next tackle. Brandon Rodd, who has been the second-team center, could go to the practice squad.

Running back (4): Marshawn Lynch opens the season on the suspended list and will not count against the 53-man limit. Fred Jackson is the starter, backed up by Dominic Rhodes and Xavier Omon.

The Bills don’t have much use for a fullback in the no-huddle offense. But McIntyre is a core special teamer. He’s on the bubble.

Specialists: (3): They are punter Brian Moorman, kicker Rian Lindell and snapper Garrison Sanborn.