Once again this offseason, I'll be examining the state of each Buffalo Bills position as the team and players look towards free agency and the 2022 NFL Draft.
As usual, we'll start things off with a look at the quarterbacks:
Under contract:
- Josh Allen
Pending Free Agents:
- Mitchell Trubisky (UFA)
State of the position:
The Bills not only clearly have a QB1 for the foreseeable future, but after another terrific regular season and one of the best performances in back-to-back postseason games of all time, many now even consider Josh Allen the best quarterback in the league. He’s that good, and that well thought of.
Buffalo is set for a long time. In fact, Allen’s six-year contract extension he signed last offseason doesn’t even kick in until 2023. He's still under contract for seven more years, all the way through the 2028 season.
Backup quarterback, though, is a different story.
General manager Brandon Beane did a great job to bring Mitchell Trubisky into the organization last year, knowing that if something happened to Allen he, at least, had a competent backup that could get them through several games. Fortunately for everyone, Allen stayed healthy all year.
But now, Trubisky is a free agent once again, and it’s hard to believe he will want to sit behind Allen for a second-straight season, knowing there will be a lot of quarterback turnover in the league and he can probably get a shot somewhere else to, at least, compete to get on the field. Beane said at his end-of-season press conference he would love to get Trubisky back again, but that doesn’t seem too likely.
Related
Davis Webb was on the practice squad all season and had been with the team for two-straight years. He was an invaluable part of the quarterbacks room and the offense. He will, no doubt, be a coach one day and is highly respected for his football IQ and leadership.
However, he took all of that with him to New Jersey when he decided to follow Brian Daboll and sign a Reserve/Future contract with the New York Giants.
So where do the Bills look?
Obviously, it would be great to have someone like Webb again. Any team loves having that person in their organization. But even then, it would most likely be just for a practice squad spot and not as the immediate backup to Allen.
Getting Trubisky back should be the first option and attempt for Beane. If anything happened to Allen, they’d, at least, have someone capable who’s been in their building for over a year. But Beane needs to keep all options open, assuming Trubisky will land elsewhere.
There are several free agent quarterbacks this offseason who have plenty of starting experience. If Beane can’t retain Trubisky, one of those should be the preferred option over an inexperienced, younger player.
However, the Bills only have so much money they can spend, and may have to go that route, regardless. Whether they sign a veteran or not, I wouldn’t rule out the organization drafting a quarterback this year, either.
Having a young signal-caller on a rookie contract who can develop behind Allen is never a bad idea.
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