Critics of Buffalo Bills’ quarterback Josh Allen have called him a glorified running back, and he has done little to dissuade those skeptics against the New York Jets today.
The Buffalo Bills need Josh Allen to develop into a star quarterback if they want to go anywhere in the near future. The team relied on a pass heavy game plan early against the Jets, going well into the second quarter before calling a designed run, and Allen has done little to show he is capable of handling the workload.
Over the first three quarters of the Bills’ opener with the Jets, Allen has been a complete disaster. The Bills have already committed four turnovers so far in this game, and Allen is responsible for all of them, throwing two interceptions and losing two fumbles.
One of the picks was returned for a touchdown by Jets’ linebacker C.J. Mosley, who took advantage of a poorly thrown Allen pass that was very low for Cole Beasley. Allen also nearly threw two more picks on Buffalo’s lone scoring drive, with one being broken up by Mosley and the other falling out of the hands of Jets’ safety Marcus Maye.
The fumbles have been brutal too, with one coming on a fourth and one play in Jets’ territory when Allen simply couldn’t handle the snap. Allen hasn’t been very efficient passing the football either, completing 19-of-30 passes for 177 yards and the two picks entering the fourth quarter.
Those numbers are very bad when you consider the fact that the Jets’ secondary is considered to be one of the worst in football, and the Bills’ coaching staff knew it based on the pass heavy game plan they entered MetLife Stadium with. Allen simply hasn’t been able to take advantage of that porous secondary, and that’s a big reason why the Bills are trailing in this contest.
The Jets haven’t done that much offensively, scoring only a Le’Veon Bell touchdown and missing a field goal along the way, so one would think that even a marginally competent performance from Allen would have the Bills in position to win.