My all-time greatest Bills quarterback is not Josh Allen or Jim Kelly

[US Egg]

There is a bit of Bills irony that would include Kemp, but I can’t, wrong forum.

[JohnNord]

10 minutes ago, Old Coot said:

 

Kemp’s flat top was better 🤣

[Bookie Man]

57 minutes ago, John Gianelli said:

Good question. Kemp had a very strong arm, and could run. Tough as nails. Wasn't the most accurate passer. But a great leader. To whom would you compare him?

Maybe Tebow?

[John Gianelli]

6 minutes ago, Bookie Man said:

Maybe Tebow?

I was actually considering him.

[Kelly to Allen]

4 hours ago, Low Positive said:

Jack Kemp never had a completion percentage over 46% in Buffalo. In the 1964 AFL championship season, he had 44%, 13Tds and 26 INTs.

 

Still better than Captain checkdown and losman 

4 hours ago, Sojourner said:

This is truly a watergate thread!

 

[Dr.Mantis_Toboggan]

[Kelly to Allen]

Remember the losmanites lol... 

 

 

[Mike in Horseheads]

Long live Vince Ferragamo!

[oldmanfan]

4 hours ago, CincyBillsFan said:

Professional football lost something primal with the merger.  The hatred between the two leagues was real and had me as a Bills fan rooting big time for the Jets & Chiefs in the 1968 & 1969 Super Bowl games.

 

But I also realized in hindsight that it wasn't until the late 60's that the best AFL teams were a match for the best NFL teams.  Those Kemp championship Bills teams would have been at best middle of the road NFL teams in 1964 & 1965.

 

For full disclosure, I was a Lamonica fan over Kemp.

Not so fast.  The Bills defenses on those championship teams were incredible.  They would have given the Browns or Packers a fight if there had been a Super Bowl.

[SoMAn]

8 hours ago, John Gianelli said:

True. But how many other Bills quarterbacks won a championship, much less two?

 

It was the inferior league in ‘64 and ’65, proven by the lopsided Packers’ wins in the ‘Championship’ games. The AFL had to compete against the established NFL for the best college players in 2 separate drafts.

There were only 7 other teams in the AFL. In 10 years of the AFL’s existence, the odds were fairly decent that any particular team could win at least one league championship. Even the Buffalo Sabres could have won a championship in an 8-team league.

Kemp wasn’t even the best QB on the team. They stupidly traded Lamonica to the Raiders for Tom Flores and Art Powell.  
 

Kemp was a true leader, but his skill level didn’t compare to JA17, who has been described as one of the most athletic quarterbacks of all time. 

Rating Kemp over Kelly or Allen is laughable. Guessing that geriatric myopia is setting in as you approach your 70s. It happens. Godspeed on your journey. 

Edited yesterday at 11:20 AM by SoMAn

[Matt_In_NH]

He helped with the 8 team league so he is your favorite?   The number of teams makes it like winning the divisional round.  
 

Kelly did not rack up stats compared to Allen.  Kemp is the reason the team was motivated? 

Edited yesterday at 10:48 AM by Matt_In_NH

[oldmanfan]

9 minutes ago, Matt_In_NH said:

He helped with the 8 team league so he is your favorite?   The number of teams makes it like winning the divisional round.  
 

Kelly did not rack up stats compared to Allen.  Kemp is the reason the team was motivated? 

You cannot compare stats between eras because of the rule changes.  In Kemp’s era defensive backs had a lot more freedom.  The average one on one coverage back then would draw a flag for unnecessary roughness today.

 

I wish people who are not old enough to have watched the AFL would quit dismissing their teams and players.  No Kemp may not have been the physical specimen Allen is, and no I am not saying Kemp was better by any means.  But Kemp was an excellent QB.  He had a very strong arm, could run, and was an excellent leader. 

[Billzgobowlin]

8 hours ago, John Gianelli said:

It's Jack Kemp. The frustration of the four Super Bowl losses and our inability to get back to the Super Bowl under Josh Allen have convinced me that the real sign of greatness is motivating your team to win the biggest game. Kemp led the Bills to two league championships in 1964 and 1965. He wasn't as gifted an athlete as Allen, and didn't rack up the stats like Kelly. But he knew how to motivate his team to win when it counted most. I watched the '65 game when I was 8 years old. I wish every Bills fan could know what it feels like to win it all.

Wasn't even the best QB on that team.  Coincidence, they started going downhill after Lamonica left, and the Mad Bomber was traded away and went to a Super Bowl with the Raiders?

[BillyJoeBills]

Old AFL rb Billy Joe played one season for Buffalo; their last championship year of 1965-then he was released and that was the start of the 60 year Buffalo curse

[Matt_In_NH]

19 minutes ago, oldmanfan said:

You cannot compare stats between eras because of the rule changes.  In Kemp’s era defensive backs had a lot more freedom.  The average one on one coverage back then would draw a flag for unnecessary roughness today.

 

I wish people who are not old enough to have watched the AFL would quit dismissing their teams and players.  No Kemp may not have been the physical specimen Allen is, and no I am not saying Kemp was better by any means.  But Kemp was an excellent QB.  He had a very strong arm, could run, and was an excellent leader. 

Allen puts up more stats in his era than Kelly did in his.  That is the point. Kemp was 3 score and 4 years ago.   Almost nothing can actually be compared to that.  

[thenorthremembers]

The argument you're making is better suited for Kelly over Allen.   The AFL had 8 teams, and they werent even the best teams playing football at that time.  Allen will end up being the best Bills player period.   Sadly, he is playing in the same conference as a quarterback who has the potential to be the best player ever.  

[Another Fan]

I liked the OPs post.  
 

I didn’t read it that Allen was better than Kemp just Kemp was the OPs favorite qb 

[nuklz2594]

day drinking

[davefan66]

Kemp? Absolutely not.  Completely different era.

 

Kelly? Had a great career. 4 straight was amazing. Not the best Bills franchise QB.

 

Allen. Even if he never wins the big game, he’s the best Bills QB ever.  One of the best the NFL has ever seen. Allen is only 42 TD passes away from Kelly in 4 less seasons.  Allen is just over 9k yards less than Kelly.  
 

In my mind, it’s Allen and it’s not even close.

[TableDestoyer69]

10 hours ago, Low Positive said:

Jack Kemp never had a completion percentage over 46% in Buffalo. In the 1964 AFL championship season, he had 44%, 13Tds and 26 INTs.

Totally different era so you can’t compare stats. If he’s still alive we should start him next year.