Getty Josh Allen and Sam Darnold embrace after a game.
The Buffalo Bills could be in the market for a new quarterback to back up Josh Allen next season, and one insider believes the job could end up going to a former rival from the 2018 draft class.
After losing former backup Mitch Trubisky in free agency last year, the Bills traded for veteran Case Keenum as a steady hand behind Allen. He saw little action behind the durable Allen, and will now be headed to free agency as well.
While many expect the Bills to re-sign Keenum for the familiarity and stability he brings, Katherine Fitzgerald of the Buffalo News believes that former New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold could be an intriguing possibility.
Josh Allen’s Friend Could Turn Backup
Fitzgerald addressed the current uncertainty behind Allen, responding to a fan in a recent mailbag that the Bills are unlikely to bring Trubisky back but could be in line to bring back Keenum for another season.
She noted that if the Bills aren’t able to re-sign Keenum, they likely want a quarterback who checks most of his boxes.
“There aren’t a ton of options who meet the sweet spot of: 1. Financially attainable; 2. Have desirable experience (but not so much that they’ll land a starting job); and 3. Aren’t even older than Keenum, who turned 35 last week,” Fitzgerald wrote.
“Sam Darnold can’t throw deep”
That leaves out some older veterans like Andy Dalton and Joe Flacco, but she suggested two others who might be a stronger fit.
“Sam Darnold passes the ‘he is friends with Josh’ test, and Taylor Heinicke basically quadrupled his experience the last two seasons,” she wrote.
The Bills will have a number of important free-agency decisions to make this coming offseason and little financial breathing room, as they currently sit close to $16 million over the salary cap. While they will be able to free up space with simple moves like restructuring Allen’s contract, it likely means no big spending outside the areas of biggest need.
Darnold, who made $18 million last season after the Carolina Panthers picked up his fifth-year option, would likely need to accept a backup-level contract with little chance of competing for a starting job if he were to come to Buffalo.
Bills Keeping Allen Happy
While Darnold’s friendship with Allen may not be the deciding factor, the Bills have shown that they value harmony in the quarterback room — and have brought in other signal callers to appease Allen in the past.
Allen told The Athletic‘s Kaylin Kahler that when general manager Brandon Beane called him last year to ask for his help in recruiting Von Miller, Allen put in a pitch for a friend. Allen, who was golfing with former Bills quarterback Matt Barkley at the time, told Beane he wanted his friend back on the team.
“I’m like, alright, well, I need you to sign Matt [Barkley],” Allen said. “And he said, okay I’ll see what I can do.”
The Bills signed Barkley the next day, and ended up landing Miller as well.
Though Darnold played for the rival Jets for the first three years of his career, he and Allen have forged a deep friendship. Both came into the NFL through the 2018 draft class, and grew close during the pre-draft process. They have continued to hang out in the years that followed, and last year attended the Masters together.