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Buffalo Bills: Jim Kelly shows up on Gil Brandt’s list of the greatest QBs

By Steven Kubitza

Quarterback Jim Kelly of the Buffalo Bills calls signals at the line during a game against the Los Angeles Raiders at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California. The Raiders won the game 34-21.
Quarterback Jim Kelly of the Buffalo Bills calls signals at the line during a game against the Los Angeles Raiders at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California. The Raiders won the game 34-21. /
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Buffalo Bills legend Jim Kelly showed up on a list of the best quarterbacks of all time compiled by a longtime NFL executive.

Buffalo Bills fans will always love Jim Kelly and not just because he is the greatest quarterback in franchise history. It is also because he is one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play the game of football.

Former NFL executive Gil Brandt, who now writes for NFL.com, recently released a list of his 16 greatest quarterbacks in NFL history. Coming in at No. 16 overall was none other than Jim Kelly. Tom Brady appeared in the top spot.

Brandt has been around a long time so it is cool to see him place Kelly among the all-time greats. Bills fans already believe this about the greatest quarterback in team history, but it is nice to get some validation from those outside of the city.

Kelly’s legacy is one that may be hard for any future Bills quarterback to ever surpass. The team has gone so long without a star under center, making Kelly’s legend grow with each passing year. The hope is that Josh Allen will be successful for the team, but surpassing Kelly’s greatness may not be possible.

The only way a quarterback reaches Kelly’s level is if he is the main reason the team wins a Super Bowl. So not something like what happened when Trent Dilfer was the starter for a Ravens championship team.

But one thing remains clear, which is that no matter what happens in the future, Kelly will always be a Bills legend. And more than that, he will be the favorite player of several generations of Bills fans for their entire lives.

Now the focus shifts to Allen’s future with the team. He may not even start the season under center but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a town filled with hope watching his every throw this summer.

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But even if Allen comes out and has a great year, he has light years to go to get fans as excited about Bills football as they were when Kelly was running the show.

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