QUINTIN JAMES
Staff Writer
After Sunday’s game, the Buffalo Bills sit at 3-1 and stand alone on top of the division, ahead of the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots. While things seem to be going well for the Bills right now, some fans still want to see the team go in a different direction at quarterback next year.
Tyrod Taylor is in the midst of his third season starting for the Bills at quarterback and though he has struggled to get the ball downfield for big plays, he is the Bills’ best option at quarterback for the foreseeable future.
In the offseason, the Bills had a decision to make regarding Taylor, and after a semi-long contract dispute, solved the issue by re-signing Taylor to a short-term contract that was less than everyone envisioned it would be. In his first two seasons, he was 14-14 as the starting quarterback but made the Pro Bowl in his first season with the Bills.
He performed well on an offense that was very run heavy and relied on the short and intermediate pass game. People often confuse the lack of passing downfield to Taylor having a weak arm but when Sammy Watkins was healthy, he and Taylor showed a connection for the big play.
His first season under center, in 14 starts, he threw for 3,035 yards with 20 touchdowns and only six interceptions. His second season was similar to his first as in 15 starts, he threw for 3,023 yards with 17 touchdowns and again only six interceptions.
This season Taylor had led the Bills to a surprising 3-1 start and has thrown for five touchdowns while only throwing one interception. Except for the game against Carolina, he has looked solid all season, limiting turnovers and putting his team in a great position to win the game.
Taylor’s problem is when he is tasked with throwing the ball downfield to receivers. He often struggles hitting the open man and settles for dump off and passes to the tight ends to avoid throwing costly interceptions in traffic.
Some of this was contributed to the coaching of former coach Rex Ryan, whose offense playbook has as much variety as a bag of plain chips. Another factor is that the Bills’ receivers the last two years haven’t been great. With former number one receiver Sammy Watkins being injury prone the last few years, the Bills receiving corps were a bunch of cast offs and secondary wideouts by the time the season would end.
What makes Tyrod Taylor an asset for the Bills is his ability to make plays in and out of the pocket. His running ability is among the best for quarterbacks in the NFL, and he often avoids sacks and interceptions by taking it and running for the first down. In his first two years starting for the Bills, Taylor has had over 500 yards rushing each season and, so far, this season is over 100 in only four games. He has 10 rushing touchdowns combined over the last two seasons and can break off a long run on a simple broken pass play.
Tyrod Taylor is not a superstar quarterback, but he is a very solid quarterback with elusive speed and quickness once he’s out of the pocket. Not many teams in the NFL can say they have a quarterback that can bring what Taylor brings. The Bills are in a weird position with a new GM and new head coach who might want to get their own guy in at quarterback, but Taylor’s strong start to the season isn’t making their decision easy.
After stripping their receiving core down and replacing names like Sammy Watkins and Robert Woods with rookie Zay Jones and Jordan Matthews, many thought the offense would struggle, but Taylor has had a good start to the season except for Week 2 in Carolina.
The Bills aren’t projected to be good enough to win a Super Bowl, but aren’t projected to be bad enough to obtain a high draft pick so the notion that Tyrod Taylor needs to be replaced is laughable. It would be confusing and odd if the Bills decided to let Taylor go because, at this point, you probably won’t find a better option out there. He is a capable starting quarterback in this league and trying to replace him would be very difficult.
Unless the Bills luck out and get one of the three good quarterbacks in this year’s draft or trade for a superstar caliber signal caller, their best and smartest decision would be to keep Taylor for the short term and build around him. He has lots of chemistry with tight end Charles Clay and running back LeSean McCoy and has proven that he can win games.
Tyrod Taylor has helped the team get off to a 3-1 start and if he and the wide receivers can improve their connection and production, the Bills potentially could have a shot at a playoff spot.