Where is Buffalo’s Urgency?
In 2018 Buffalo drafted Josh Allen with the seventh overall pick and in the process accomplished the most important part of building a football team: acquiring a franchise quarterback. Surely if you manage to find the most difficult piece of the puzzle then everything else will fall into place without issue right? Not for Buffalo it would seem.
First let’s start with the positive, which is that they have, Josh Allen. So far he’s compiled a regular season record of 63-30 and has led the Bills to five playoff wins. Then let’s look at the fact that he has 220 combined passing and rushing touchdowns so far in his career. Clearly Allen is capable of not only scoring, but leading the team to wins. Even though he’s capable of this he still needs help. Help which Buffalo has struggled to provide him with.
One of the most important things for an offense to be successful, particularly when it has a young quarterback, is an effective running game. This is something that the Bills haven’t had often enough during Allen’s tenure. During his rookie year the team’s leading rusher (outside of Allen) was LeSean McCoy. As great of a career as McCoy had he was no longer the same back he once was. He only averaged 3.2 yards per carry for the season en route to putting up 514 rushing yards. In fact for the first five seasons of Allen’s career the team failed to have a 1,000 yard rusher. Devin Singletary shouldered the majority of the load and while he was a solid player he wasn’t a game changer. It wasn’t until James Cook this past season that Buffalo had a running back reach 1,000 yards while playing with Allen. So it appears the team finally has their answer at running back, but what happens if he gets hurt? Will the entire load be on Allen’s shoulders again?
When it comes to receivers Allen has had a bit more luck than he has with running backs. His rookie year involved a lackluster receiving corps, but the next season John Brown had a solid season. However it was Buffalo’s trade for Stefon Diggs prior to the 2020 season that is the biggest move Buffalo has made so far during Josh Allen’s career to impact him. Diggs gave Allen a true number one receiver and helped him become an elite quarterback. Even with the addition of Diggs the Bills still haven’t been able to reach the Super Bowl in large part thanks to the blockade that is Kansas City. This past season the cracks began to show and Diggs made it clear that he wasn’t happy, so the Bills traded him before the draft. Which opened up a pretty big hole that Buffalo hasn’t fully filled.
Not only did Buffalo trade Stefon Diggs, but they also watched their next best receiver, Gabe Davis, walk in free agency. This didn’t seem as alarming at first as this year’s NFL draft was absolutely loaded with wide receiver prospects. The problem is Buffalo wasn’t aggressive in going after them. They traded down multiple times with their first pick, in fact they traded with the Kansas City Chiefs who used that selection to draft the fastest receiver Xavier Worthy. They essentially stepped aside to allow their biggest rival the opportunity to draft a player in the vein of Tyreek Hill. Then they traded down some more before drafting Keon Coleman with the first pick of the second round.
I really like Coleman, I think he could be a fine player, but the fact that Buffalo lost their two top targets and then traded down for a receiver who was far from one of the draft’s most exciting is a bit alarming. Not because Coleman isn’t talented, but because it feels like there is a total lack of urgency in Buffalo. Josh Allen is only going to continue getting more expensive with each passing season, so every draft pick and acquisition has to count. Trading down and allowing rival teams to pick up big time prospects isn’t a recipe for success.
Just look at how loaded the AFC is, we know Kansas City is dominant and they added another dangerous weapon in Worthy. Cincinnati will be much better this season with a healthy Joe Burrow, the Ravens are one of the league’s best with Jackson. Pittsburgh and Cleveland could make noise. Jacksonville and Houston could both be playoff teams. In the Bills’ own division you have Miami and New York improving. It feels like the entire conference is improving and Buffalo is more or less standing pat.
Buffalo needs to look at Cam Newton as a cautionary tale. Like Allen, Newton was a physical specimen and seemed unstoppable. The Panthers completely failed to build around him and he was eventually worn down from carrying the load on his own and became a shell of his former self. Allen is a better passer and will likely play better than Newton as he ages, but like with Newton he will be worn down into a player far different than he is now if Buffalo doesn’t help him. He needs to be surrounded with weapons and the team needs to be aggressive while he’s playing at a high level. The AFC is currently in an arms race and if Buffalo doesn’t join in soon they’ll be left behind and Josh Allen’s prime will be wasted.
Photo Creds: Yahoo Sports
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