Rank your Top 10 Bills QBs

[BuffaloMatt]

6 minutes ago, Kirby Jackson said:

If you have this team and the early 90’s teams had both QBs, who starts? It’s a rhetorical question. The gap from Allen to Kelly is as wide as Kelly to who is 3rd. 

I'll give you that! But Kelly to his credit has had more clutch game winning drives. I need a little of that Kelly clutch end game performance out of JA. I was confident that JA was going to drive down the field on that last possession and win it this year. Sadly, I was wrong. Go Bills!

[Kirby Jackson]

36 minutes ago, BuffaloMatt said:

I'll give you that! But Kelly to his credit has had more clutch game winning drives. I need a little of that Kelly clutch end game performance out of JA. I was confident that JA was going to drive down the field on that last possession and win it this year. Sadly, I was wrong. Go Bills!

Kelly led one of the greatest rosters in league history!!! He was a top 5-10 player on that team. He’s not close to Josh Allen. 

Edited Friday at 08:14 PM by Kirby Jackson

[Einstein]

On 2/27/2025 at 2:28 PM, DrDawkinstein said:

 

I get what youre saying. I'd also argue that if Allen had Kelly's defenses he would have WON 4 Super Bowls already.

Kelly would have went to 0 Super Bowls in todays AFC.

Allen is far and away the best QB in Bills history. We would have a ring or two if Allen was leading those SB teams.

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

Going to challenge myself and only count QBs i ever watched.  

 

Allen

Kelly

Flutie 

Tyrod - Some cool highlights, and broke the drought

Fitzpatrick - Fun times but they lost a ton of games

Bledsoe - Didn't totally work out - but he was better than everyone below him

Orton - Sad that he makes this list at all let alone this high up.  

Reich - Didn't play a ton of regular season snaps, but his playoff numbers are pretty good actually.  

Edwards - Clear upgrade over Losman

Manuel - Started with a little promise and he was about as good as everyone thought he was.  You could probably plop losman in here too.  

[AlCowlingsTaxiService]

23 hours ago, JP51 said:

You blew my next thread LOL name the worst QBs... maybe that would have been a more interesting one... it starts with Hobert and Collins... then it goes from there.

Don’t forget the legendary Joe Dufek!

[somnus00]

On 2/27/2025 at 11:24 AM, BuffaloMatt said:

1 Kelly*

2-10 Allen**

 

* Got to four superbowls

** Ask again when he's retired

I love Kelly. But the man was on a team stacked with Hall Of Famers, All-Pros, and Pro Bowlers. HE didn't get to 4 Superbowls on his own. Allen has been carrying this team. Your opinion is your opinion. So I won't say you're wrong. But I respectfully disagree.

[stevestojan]

On 2/27/2025 at 11:24 AM, BuffaloMatt said:

1 Kelly*

2-10 Allen**

 

* Got to four superbowls

** Ask again when he's retired

You’ve got to be kidding. 
 

Look at the tools Jim had around him (on both sides of the ball) compared to Josh. Josh is objectively better than Jim in almost every way. 

[corta765]

1 hour ago, Kirby Jackson said:

If you have this team and the early 90’s teams had both QBs, who starts? It’s a rhetorical question. The gap from Allen to Kelly is as wide as Kelly to who is 3rd. 

 

You cannot compare across eras. The game is different, the way players train is different, the rules are so different and protect QBs to such a massive degree compared to pre 2007.

 

People keep acting like Jim Kelly was a scrub when he finished his time as an all timer and had the stats & accolades to back it. The gap from Allen to Kelly is not nearly as wide as people keep acting. Yes Josh is more talented and I fully expect by careers end he passes Jimbo, but each needs to be evaluated by their own merit given how many factors changed over 30 years.

[PromoTheRobot]

On 2/27/2025 at 11:13 AM, JP51 said:

I am sure we are going to get the same players pretty much... I am interested in where they end up in your rankings...  I am also interested in where Kelly and Allen show up in your picks...  here are mine

 

Allen

Kelly

Kemp

Ferguson

Flutie

Bledsoe

Fitz

Lamonica

Tyrod

Frank Reich

 

 

Agree with top 4. I don't think Flutie was top 5. Tyrod, Bledsoe and Fitz should be higher. Can't think of anyone I'd add.

Edited Friday at 10:14 PM by PromoTheRobot

[Kirby Jackson]

1 hour ago, corta765 said:

 

You cannot compare across eras. The game is different, the way players train is different, the rules are so different and protect QBs to such a massive degree compared to pre 2007.

 

People keep acting like Jim Kelly was a scrub when he finished his time as an all timer and had the stats & accolades to back it. The gap from Allen to Kelly is not nearly as wide as people keep acting. Yes Josh is more talented and I fully expect by careers end he passes Jimbo, but each needs to be evaluated by their own merit given how many factors changed over 30 years.

This whole exercise is comparing across eras. Kelly was the steward of the best team in football (much like Jalen Hurts this year). He was a very good player (much like Jalen Hurts was this year). He led an elite roster to great places and was a pro bowl player along the way. He made it to the HOF.
 

Josh Allen is arguably the most dominant player in the sport. He’s the most valuable player in the league, playing the most important position. The Bills won a lot even when Reich was in. They won with Kelly and, at times, because of Kelly. This generation of Bills almost always win because of Josh. He’s almost always the best player on the field. Kelly was never the best player on the field. 
 

This isn’t mean as hate on Kelly but the gap between the 2 is wide. One was a great steward of a historically great team. The other IS the reason that the team is great. There isn’t a debate as to who is better. I saw every game that both played. We remember those early 90’s teams fondly but we often misremember why they were so great. It isn’t because they had one of the best QBs ever. They were the best roster in football with a top 40 all-time QB. Josh Allen will be a top 10 all-time QB.

Edited Friday at 09:38 PM by Kirby Jackson

[JP51]

39 minutes ago, stevestojan said:

You’ve got to be kidding. 
 

Look at the tools Jim had around him (on both sides of the ball) compared to Josh. Josh is objectively better than Jim in almost every way. 

I am with you on this one... but 1 point that another poster made that I thought was interesting...  QBs were not protected anywhere near then what they are today, PI rules were much more lax then than they are now.... LBs were much bigger then and there was no mercy given to QBs... wonder how this effects the game if they switch eras...  still sticking with Allen, but it gave me cause to ponder. 

[dgrochester55]

I am not sure if Buffalo has had ten long term starting caliber quarterbacks in their entire time, but here goes.

 

1) Kelly: I think that Allen is eventually number 1, but not until there is a Super Bowl on his resume. Kelly played at a time when it was tougher for quarterbacks and made the Super Bowl four times in a row. That still gives him the edge for now.

 

2) Allen: Number one for stats, number two for playoff success

 

3) Ferguson, 4) Lamonica, 5) Kemp: My earliest football memories were mid 80's, so I do not know a whole lot about them. Based on what i have heard over the years and seen on stats, they all had stretches of success that were more than any other Bills QB outside of Kelly and Allen. If anyone else old enough to remember them thinks that I got the order wrong, feel free to correct me.

 

6) Bledsoe: Bledsoe was a good pocket passer and put up decent numbers, but played behind some of the worst offensive lines that I remember. This limited his success

 

7) Flutie: Many say that he was toxic in the locker room and his success was shorter than most of the others on the list, but he had a couple of great years that kept Buffalo relevant and on the the national spotlight for a little longer after the Kelly era.

 

8 ) Reich: Although he was never technically a starter, he came through when needed and was behind some great moments in Buffalo history. Given the chance earlier in his career in the right situation, I think that he could have been a serviceable starter for a few years.

 

9) Tyrod Taylor: His two years in the Rex Ryan era were productive and with better defenses, he may of broken the drought a little earlier. Defenses had him figured out by 2017, but he deserves credit for helping break the drought. It was too bad about his injury in San Diego a couple of years later, I feel like he may have had another shot as a starter somewhere if that had not happened.

 

10) Fitz: Some may have him higher, but the numbers don't lie. Fitzy has an iconic personality, is one of the most popular Bills and had some good years on other teams, but his win/loss record and propensity to make crippling turnovers in Buffalo shortened his time here. He still makes the top ten because after that, you have a lot of busts, has been and never was options..

 

Edited Friday at 09:32 PM by dgrochester55

[Kirby Jackson]

21 minutes ago, JP51 said:

I am with you on this one... but 1 point that another poster made that I thought was interesting...  QBs were not protected anywhere near then what they are today, PI rules were much more lax then than they are now.... LBs were much bigger then and there was no mercy given to QBs... wonder how this effects the game if they switch eras...  still sticking with Allen, but it gave me cause to ponder. 

If anything it widens the gap. Do we think bigger, slower LBs chasing Allen is an advantage to Kelly? 

[stevestojan]

1 hour ago, JP51 said:

I am with you on this one... but 1 point that another poster made that I thought was interesting...  QBs were not protected anywhere near then what they are today, PI rules were much more lax then than they are now.... LBs were much bigger then and there was no mercy given to QBs... wonder how this effects the game if they switch eras...  still sticking with Allen, but it gave me cause to ponder. 

That’s a really valid point. 👍

[njbuff]

Mathison

Ferragamo

Tuel

Hobert

Johnson

Losman

Kofler

Brohm

Fromm

Travis Brown

[Kirby Jackson]

2 minutes ago, njbuff said:

Mathison

Ferragamo

Tuel

Hobert

Johnson

Losman

Kofler

Brohm

Fromm

Travis Brown

How in the world can you have this list and not include Peterman?!? 

[njbuff]

2 minutes ago, Kirby Jackson said:

How in the world can you have this list and not include Peterman?!? 

Peterman wouldn’t be a Bills list, he’d be on an all time NFL list. 😁

[TheyCallMeAndy]

The Tyrod Taylor disrespect is crazy. 

[RyanC883]

oh man, this will be bad since I didn't start watching till late 1980's: 

 

1. Josh Allen

2. Jim Kelley

3.  Jack Kemp

4.  Tyrod Taylor

5.  Ferguson

6.  Reich

7. Fitzpatrick

8.  Beldsoe 

9.  Flutie

10.  Alex Van Pelt 

[Kirby Jackson]

4 minutes ago, TheyCallMeAndy said:

The Tyrod Taylor disrespect is crazy. 

100%!! He’s no worse than 7 and you could make a case as high as like 4. He wasn’t flashy but did a lot well. For example, stack his per game next to Bledsoe and I’ll bet it isn’t close (especially after Bledsoe’s first 8 games).