Not long ago, Bills quarterback Josh Allen was a special young NFL talent. He’s now a special not-so-young NFL talent.
Allen turns 30 today.
He has accomplished much in his first eight NFL seasons. He’s second behind Patrick Mahomes in wins before the age of 30. Mahomes has 89; Allen has 88. (Lamar Jackson, who is tied for third at 80 with Ben Roethlisberger and Peyton Manning, has a chance to pass both of them.)
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Allen is also fourth in career touchdown passes by 30, with 220. Patrick Mahomes leads with 247. Dan Marino is second at 245, and Peyton Manning has 244.
Obviously, Allen lacks the thing he wants most: A Super Bowl win. Which first requires a Super Bowl appearance.
From Allen’s perspective, he has done everything he can to get there. Many regard him as the single best player in the league. And he’s still in his prime.
After eight years, Allen is approaching the point where his experience will dovetail with his skills. That will make him even more dangerous.
Still, there’s a shelf life. How many more prime years will Allen have? How many more chances will he have to get to the top of the mountain?
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Seven? Eight? Nine? The years go quickly. The Bills have yet to put enough of a supporting cast around him to get to where he can take them.
In January, owner Terry Pegula resolved the talent vs. coaching debate by firing coach Sean McDermott and promoting G.M. Brandon Beane to president of football operations. Muddying that move was the promotion of offensive coordinator Joe Brady to head coach.
Regardless, the pressure keeps building. One season at a time. Allen is good enough to win Super Bowls. Is the rest of the organization doing well enough to get him there?
So far, the answer is in the results.
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