Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen has developed into one of the sport's elite quarterbacks, throwing for 37 touchdowns and adding another eight on the ground in 2020, en route to finishing second in NFL MVP voting.
But when Allen was a prospect out of Wyoming ahead of the 2018 NFL Draft, he was hardly seen as a slam dunk to develop into the superstar that he is. Among other things, there was some concern that Allen posted just a 56.2% completion percentage in his collegiate career. But at the time of his selection, ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. said not to worry about that, and even compared Allen to one of the most dominant pitchers in MLB history:
If you noticed, Allen told Suzy Kolber that he would make the Bills "look like the smartest people out there" for trading up and selecting him with the No. 7 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. It took a few years, but Allen has done that. Despite No. 1 overall pick Baker Mayfield leading the Cleveland Browns back to the postseason in 2020 - a year after No. 32 overall pick Lamar Jackson won the NFL MVP - the guess here is that if you polled all 32 league executives about which quarterback from the class they'd most like to have, the majority would say Allen.
Allen's completion percentage was an issue during his first two seasons, but he exploded in year three under the tutelage of offensive coordinator Brian Daboll and with the help of All-Pro wide receiver Stefon Diggs. After posting an underwhelming 52.8% completion percentage in 2018, Allen improved to 69.2% in 2020, the fourth-best mark in the league.
You don't want to make too much of one season, but if Allen puts together a string of seasons anything like what he did in his third season, he may end up in Canton some day. In the meantime, he'll try to help the Bills return to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1994.
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