Buffalo Bills confident in Matt Barkley as backup but like competition

While the Buffalo Bills are confident in Matt Barkley, they do like the competition for that spot.

It has been awhile since the questions at quarterback for the Buffalo Bills wasn’t the starter but more so at the backup position. The Bills have their franchise quarterback in Josh Allen but there seems to be a training camp battle brewing between Matt Barkley, Davis Webb and fifth round draft pick Jake Fromm.

On Thursday, Sean McDermott was asked during his press conference with the media about Matt Barkley and how confident they are in him as their backup.

“Very confident. I am very confident in Matt [Barkley] for a lot of reasons all that being said, competition is good,” McDermott said.

Barkley has been with the Buffalo Bills since joining the team midway through the 2018 season when Josh Allen and Derek Anderson were hurt. He stepped in against the New York Jets and had arguably the best game of his career when he went 15 of 25 for 232 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.

That performance, and the way he works with Josh Allen on the sidelines, likely earned him a contract extension after that year. However, the Bills still wanted to bring in competition and did that by bringing back Davis Webb, who was on the practice squad last year, and drafting Jake Fromm in the 2020 NFL Draft.

An interesting point that Sean McDermott brought up during his answer, and this may not be discussed as frequently, but this year depth at positions is likely going to be challenged more than in year’s past due to the COVID-19 virus.

If players are forced to miss time due to the virus, it is important especially at the quarterback position to have a player that can step in and run this offense.

It remains to be seen who that player is and if Matt Barkley would be able to shoulder that responsibility. He is the most veteran player but it really wouldn’t be surprising to see Webb or Fromm surpass him with a strong training camp and preseason.