Buffalo Bills Should Name Tyrod Taylor Starting Quarterback For 2015 NFL Season

Buffalo Bills Should Name Tyrod Taylor Starting Quarterback
Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports

When Rex Ryan took the head coaching job with the Buffalo Bills, it left a number of people around the NFL scratching their heads. Ryan’s biggest downfall with the New York Jets was his inability to find a consistent quarterback, and he chose to go to the Bills. They had now-retired Kyle Orton starting at the end of last season, and a first-round bust in E.J. Manuel on the roster. Ryan still had a second interview set up with the Atlanta Falcons, who have Matt Ryan, when he chose to take the Bills job.

Ryan’s solution to not having a starting-caliber quarterback on the roster was to bring in two backups, Tyrod Taylor and Matt Cassel, to compete with Manuel for the position. Cassel had one good year with the New England Patriots in 2008, while filling in for the injured Tom Brady, and he had one solid season for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2010. Outside of those two seasons, Cassel has been nothing but an average quarterback at best, and he’s well past his prime.

Manuel has played in 15 games since being drafted in the first-round of the 2013 NFL Draft out of Florida State. In those 15 games, Manuel has 16 touchdown passes, and 16 turnovers. The talent is there, but he’s never been able to put it all together on the field. It’s possible that offensive coordinator Greg Roman feels that he can fix Manuel, but it’s more likely that Manuel’s days as a NFL starting quarterback are over.

That leaves Taylor, who is the one unknown of this group. He’s still just 25-years-old, and he’s only attempted 35 career passes, as he enters his fifth season in the NFL. Taylor has been Joe Flacco‘s backup with the Baltimore Ravens for his entire career, and has never been given a real opportunity. With his athletic ability, and his potential, Ryan and Roman should name Taylor the starting quarterback as soon as possible. Taylor is the only option that inspires any sort of optimism for Bills’ fans.

Roman could install an offense identical to the Seattle Seahawks. A power-running game has always been Ryan’s philosophy, and adding some read-option plays to the offense would allow the Bills’ to take advantage of Taylor’s legs, while also opening up more running lanes for LeSean McCoy. Even Percy Harvin fits perfectly into a read-option system, as he has plenty of experience taking jet sweeps and pitches out of the backfield.

Cassel and Manuel have been given the opportunity to show what they can do, and they’ve only proven to be average. Taylor is still young, and he is the wild-card, but the Bills have to give him a shot. There’s potential that he could be a poor man’s Russell Wilson, or he could end up being Michael Vick, but either way, the Bills have to find out.

Jason Fletcher is a Senior Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @JasonFletcher25, “Like” him on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google+.

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