Western New York hit a crossroads in 2018 that’s well remembered.
Which quarterback should the Buffalo Bills target at that year’s NFL draft? The two centerpieces of the discussion were Josh Allen and Josh Rosen.
The answer ended up being Allen, but it was never clear nor the obvious choice until years later.
Hindsight is 20/20. Buffalonians can be… a bit much… when it comes to looking back at early debates regarding the 2018 QB class. Fact is, Allen looked little better than Rosen until just last season so… chill.
But there’s no arguing now how different the paths of those two guys named Josh. Recent headlines have highlighted that once again.
On Tuesday, Rosen, the No. 10 overall pick by the Arizona Cardinals three picks after Buffalo grabbed Allen at No. 7 after trading up, has been cut by the San Francisco 49ers.
A team threw in the towel on Rosen… again. Along with the Cards, the Miami Dolphins did, too.
The 49ers were letting battle for a backup spot on their roster. Actually, the Niners were letting him fight for the third QB spot, not even the main backup.
Congrats to Nate Sudfeld for winning the QB3 battle in San Fran.
Rosen failed to even make the first round of cuts in the Bay Area as he was released on Tuesday. That round of cuts in the NFL is the first of three that will occur this offseason.
Rosen not even making it beyond Round 1 is a pretty ugly sign.
Of course, that now brings us to Allen. It’s debatable if he’s the best quarterback from the 2018 first round. Lamar Jackson did win the MVP Award with the Baltimore Ravens, after all.
But by comparison in both the statistics and eye test, Allen has turned into the best passer of the bunch. That’s what helped him earn a massive extension just before Rosen was cut.
In retrospect, the true “boom-or-bust” situation in 2018 was not Allen as a prospect. It was the Allen vs. Rosen decision, and the Bills (thankfully) made the right one.
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