Buffalo Bills: Predicting who will start at QB

By Ryan Ratty | Jun 6, 2015

The Buffalo Bills have Matt Cassel, E.J. Manuel, and Tyrod Taylor fighting for the starting quarterback position. Who will win the job?

Over the offseason, the Buffalo Bills made a ton of moves in attempts to making a playoff push in 2015. The first move they made is when they brought in polarizing Rex Ryan to be the head coach. Doug Marrone wasn’t fired, but the two sides could not agree upon on a deal to bring him back. That led to the Bills looking into the open market for a new coach and the crazy thing is that they arguably got the best one available.

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After that, they traded away stud inside linebacker for

LeSean McCoy

in attempt to bring a proven name to their offense. This move showed a lot about the Bills. In one way, this trade showed that Rex doesn’t need a star at middle linebacker for his defense to work to perfection. It also showed that the Bills were willing to pay a hefty price to bring in a dynamic offensive player.

With McCoy on the roster, the Bills have a legitimate superstar that can simply make wowing plays in both the running and pass-catching game. Despite McCoy’s greatness, the most important position on an NFL roster is the quarterback position and as of now, the Bills do not have a clear-cut option at the position.

In 2014, Kyle Orton was the starter for the majority of the year, but with his retirement, the Bills have brought in a few journeyman to compete for the starting job. One thing to note is that the Bills clearly feel fine about their quarterback situation, as they didn’t take one in the 2015 NFL Draft and they didn’t sign one in the undrafted free agent process.

While every expert may think otherwise, the Bills believe that their Week 1 starting quarterback is already on the roster. The Bills may have one of the best defenses in the league and they may also have one of the best running backs in the league, but I simply don’t believe Matt Cassel, E.J. Manuel, or Tyrod Taylor will win enough games for this team to make the playoffs.

Out of the three, the player whose had the most success in this league is Cassel. Spending time with the New England Patriots a few short seasons ago, Cassel guided the Patriots to an 11-5. They didn’t make the playoffs last year, but they finished eighth in points and fifth in total offensive yards.

It’s unfair to give a ton of credit to Cassel, as he played in a star-studded offense and he worked with offensive guru Bill Belichick, but he did taking starting snaps, albeit in short stints, with the Kansas City Chiefs and the Minnesota Vikings.

Behind him is a guy like Manuel, who, despite begin drafted in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft, has been a major bust. Manuel lacks mechanics and the overall skills that are needed from a pocket-passing quarterback in the NFL. Similarly, Taylor is a guy that is truly only known for his legs. A backup for the past few years for the Baltimore Ravens, inserting Taylor into the starting lineup would be problematic.

With all of that being said, the Bills should go with Cassel as their starter. He’s not a guy that will win them a Super Bowl, but he’s better than both Manuel and Taylor, and he gives the Bills a guy they can use as a stopgap solution. However, when the 2016 NFL Draft rolls around, I wouldn’t be surprised if one of the top quarterbacks was taken by Buffalo.

Next: Will Tyrod Taylor start at QB?

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