The Buffalo Bills have an elite quarterback. That’s not just me rambling; the good folks over at ESPN recently released their quarterback rankings, and they had Josh Allen at No. 1 among all NFL signal-callers. Our own top-dog, Chris Trapasso, wrote that Allen is the best player in the NFL before that ESPN piece published.
Any discussion of the backup quarterback spot, then, is tainted a bit with the knowledge that none of us want to see that backup in the game for an extended period of time. Whether
we’re talking about Case Keenum, Mitchell Trubisky, Matt Barkley, or the subject of today’s edition of “91 players in 91 days,” we know that the backup quarterback is nowhere near as good as the starting quarterback. _____________________________________________________________________________
Name: Kyle Allen
Number: 11
Position: QB
Height/Weight: 6’3” 210 lbs.
Age: 30 (31 on 3/8/2027)
Experience/Draft: 8; signed with the Carolina Panthers following the 2018 NFL Draft
College: Houston
Acquired: Signed with Bills on 3/12/2026
Financial situation (per Spotrac): Allen signed a two-year deal worth $4.1 million overall this spring. For the 2026 season, his cap hit if he makes the 53-man roster is $1.9 million. If he’s released, the Bills will carry a dead cap charge of $1.8 million this season.
2025 Recap: Allen spent last year with the Detroit Lions as the backup to Jared Goff. He played just sixteen offensive snaps in the regular season, throwing two incomplete passes and kneeling three times for -3 rushing yards. He had plenty of action in the preseason, though, completing 79.5% of his pass attempts (35-of-44) for 401 yards, five touchdowns, and two interceptions. He rushed five times for 16 yards, as well.
Positional outlook: Allen is one of three quarterbacks on the current roster. Josh Allen and Shane Buechele are the others.
2026 Offseason: Allen is healthy and he participated in offseason workouts. He’s likely to see lots of action in the preseason.
2026 Season outlook: In some places, the starting quarterback is weak enough where fans and pundits clamor for the backup quarterback to take the field. With the Bills, it’s the exact opposite: The starting quarterback is elite, so absolutely no one hopes that the backup sees a snap that doesn’t involve garbage-time kneel-downs this season. If Kyle Allen does have to play for an extended time, it likely spells curtains for the Bills. He hasn’t had any extended playing ime in the NFL since the 2022 season when he started two games for the Houston Texans. He was mildly successful in his one season starting with the Carolina Panthers, throwing 17 touchdowns and 16 interceptions in 13 games back in 2019, but let’s be realistic here: Josh Allen is one of one. Kyle Allen, while he might be a great locker room guy and a serviceable veteran to hold the clipboard on Sundays, isn’t the man we want taking snaps.
With all of that said, Allen is worlds better than Shane Buechele, the only other person vying for a role on the sidelines on Sundays. Kyle Allen will be Josh Allen’s backup this season.
