Getty Matt Barkley looks to make a pass in a Buffalo Bills game.
The Buffalo Bills could be facing a new quarterback controversy after backup Kyle Allen continued to struggle in the team’s preseason opener while No. 3 Matt Barkley turned in a huge game.
Allen raised some concerns in training camp as he struggled in team drills, committing turnovers and running into issues with his accuracy. He rebounded a bit in the team August 12 preseason opener against the Indianapolis Colts, completing 8-of-15 passes for 122 yards with one interception that bounced off the hands of his wide receiver and went the other way for a touchdown.
Barkley, who came into the game after halftime and faced mostly third-stringers and practice squad candidates, outshined Allen and sparked some rumors that the Bills may reconsider their depth chart.
Matt Barkley Shines in Bills’ Preseason Opener
Barkley was nearly perfect in Buffalo’s 23-19 win, going 14-of-15 for 172 yards and two touchdowns, leading the team to a comeback victory and earning a 152.7 quarterback rating.
The performance had some questioning whether Allen had still done enough to earn the No. 2 job behind starter Josh Allen.
“Matt Barkley with a great drive. He’s the QB2 to me right now,” tweeted Bills reporter Kevin Massare of Cover1.
Patrick Moran, host of the Talking Buffalo podcast, agreed that Barkley looked stronger in real-game action that Allen.
Other fans suggested that Barkley should take the spot as primary backup.
“Matt Barkley is QB2 and it’s not even close,” another fan wrote on Twitter.
The Bills could also have another option that would allow them to keep both Barkley and Allen on the roster. As ESPN’s Kevin Seifert reported, NFL owners on May 22 approved a new rule that would allow teams to designation an emergency quarterback from the active roster on game days.
In order to utilize the rule, the Bills would need to keep all three quarterbacks on their active roster, which they have not done in recent seasons under head coach Sean McDermott.
Bills Could Look for Outside Help
Barkley joined the Bills in 2018 and formed a close relationship with Josh Allen, who then pushed the team to re-sign Barkley again in the 2022 offseason after he left in free agency the prior year. Barkley spent last season on Buffalo’s practice squad, and insiders expected him to return there again this year.
Kyle Allen’s spot as the No. 2 appeared to be set going into training camp, but his shaky performances allowed some doubt to creep in. The Athletic‘s Joe Buscaglia suggested that the team may be forced to look at veteran alternatives to back up Josh Allen if Kyle Allen doesn’t show enough improvement over the course of the preseason.
Buscaglia wrote that Kyle Allen “consistently turned the ball over either through bad throws or not being on the same page with his wide receivers.”
“Kyle Allen had probably his worst interception of training camp Wednesday, where he wobbled a throw at least seven yards short of his intended target and right into the arms of Siran Neal, who only had to jump to make the catch,” Buscaglia wrote.