Buffalo Bills: EJ Manuel’s career comes to a quiet end

As another season begins, another former Buffalo Bills first-round pick is out of the league. This most recent one debuted not too long ago.

2013 was not a great year to draft a quarterback.

So naturally, the Buffalo Bills ended up taking one with the No. 16 overall pick in that year’s NFL Draft.

The Bills took EJ Manuel and made him the starter right away. He got off to a nice start but injuries, competition and coaching changes led to a forgettable career in Buffalo. He started only 17 games in four years with the team before heading to Oakland.

Now, he has officially called it a career. The news dropped Monday night.

Manuel came into a tough situation but I’m not sure he would have had great success anywhere else in the NFL. He could have been a nice backup, just not a starting quarterback to lead a team to the playoffs on a consistent basis.

Yet he was arguably the top quarterback available in that draft class. The next QB taken was Geno Smith, followed by the likes of Mike Glennon, Matt Barkley and Ryan Nassib. So after all this time, the Bills still have a quarterback from the class on the roster in Barkley.

Thinking back on 2013 and the selection of Manuel may have some fans worried about the future of Josh Allen. Bills fans have seen promise turn into nothing before. My argument for things being different this time around is that there is a legitimate structure in place with Brandon Beane and Sean McDermott.

I don’t predict any surprise retirements or any coaches quitting.

This all seems so long ago at this point, but it was only six years ago when the promise of Manuel hung over Buffalo. I wish him the best in his retirement. Maybe he launches a comeback at some point in the future.