Could A.J. McCarron be a backup in Buffalo in 2018

Cincinnati Bengals former backup quarterback A.J. McCarron left via free agency this offseason to play for the Buffalo Bills. Will he be their starter?

The Cincinnati Bengals drafted quarterback A.J. McCarron in the fifth-round of the 2014 draft. He was set to become a restricted free agent this offseason until McCarron filed a grievance against the Bengals making him an unrestricted free agent. McCarron left Cincinnati for a better chance at a starting position with the Buffalo Bills. Considering the group of quarterbacks that hit free agency this offseason, Buffalo was primarily his only option.

McCarron wanted to go somewhere he could compete for the starting job and not be a bridge quarterback. Unfortunately for him, that’s precisely what he will be if he manages to start for the Bills in 2018. Buffalo drafted fifth-round pick Nathan Peterman last offseason which most remember as the quarterback head coach Sean McDermott mistakenly benched Tyrod Taylor for and threw for five interceptions in a single half. The organization spent significant draft capital this year on trading up and drafting Wyoming quarterback Josh Allen at number seven overall.

It’s unlikely that Allen will be the starter for the Bills come week one, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he starts later in the season. During OTA workouts, McCarron has been splitting first-team reps with Peterman. ESPN Bills reporter, Mike Rodak, says that Peterman is the Bills surprise offseason standout during camp.

"The 2017 fifth-round pick was an afterthought at best and a laughingstock at worst after his five-interception performance against the Chargers last season, but Peterman should be considered a serious contender for the starting job in Buffalo. He has rotated daily with AJ McCarron to lead the first-team offense, with rookie Josh Allen starting in minicamp to see periodic time with that group. Peterman has looked sharp, including Tuesday at minicamp, when he completed 10 of 13 passes in 11-on-11 drills and ended practice with a touchdown."

While Peterman’s performance was beyond terrible against the Los Angeles Chargers good defense last season, there’s no reason to only look at him for that one half of football. In fact, McDermott should be looked at for that terrible performance as there was no reason to throw the fifth-round quarterback in that game in the first place when starter Tyrod Taylor had helped the team to a winning record to that point in the season.

McCarron only had three starts while in Cincinnati during the regular season and never seemed to win the coaches over really. Some fans would argue that is just head coach Marvin Lewis being too loyal to starting quarterback Andy Dalton. Regardless, McCarron wanted to go somewhere and have a chance at a starting job. It sounds like he will need a great training camp and preseason performance to land that starting job.

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Buffalo will be a hard place to prove himself behind another offensive line that saw multiple top talents leave during the offseason. Outside of running back LeSean McCoy, McCarron will have limited receiver talent to throw the ball to as well. As of right now, the top wide receiver for the Bills is Kelvin Benjamin who was acquired late last season after the team traded away their top wide receiver Sammy Watkins to the Los Angeles Rams in the preseason.