Where does Bills’ Josh Allen rank among QBs polled by NFL executives?

ESPN filled the gap in the 2024 NFL offseason with a series of NFL Executive Poll Position Rankings, a collection of articles in which reporter Jeremy Fowler surveyed league executives, coaches and scouts and asked them to rank the top 10 players at each position. The most anticipated entry in the series came Monday morning, when the outlet released its Executive Poll of Quarterback Rankings.

There are no surprises at the top, as Kansas City Chiefs point guard Patrick Mahomes is clearly placed above his peers. The rest of the top five is a bit more debatable; Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is ranked the third-best quarterback in football, behind Mahomes and Cincinnati Bengals passer Joe Burrow.

“Allen’s mix of genius and inconsistency left voters with mixed feelings,” Fowler wrote. “He received the only first-place vote that didn’t go to Mahomes — and yet he wasn’t in the top five for many voters.”

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The narrative from league employees interviewed sounds similar to that of NFL fans this offseason: Some highlight Allen’s impact on the team and his prowess with his arms and legs, while others dwell on his turnover issues.

“Allen is a Luka Doncic-level volume scorer,” Fowler wrote. “His 173 total touchdowns since 2020 are easily the best in the league, and Allen is the only quarterback in NFL history with five seasons of at least 20 passing touchdowns and five rushing touchdowns — both of which he did in a row… But that’s not enough to convince some critics who point to the alarming turnover numbers: 78 interceptions, 59 fumbles since 2018. By contrast, Mahomes has 62 interceptions and 36 fumbles.”

“Allen’s 47 interceptions since 2020 are the most in the league. “One of the most overrated players in the NFL,” one veteran NFL executive said. “He’s a huge talent but makes a lot of mistakes. He’s not developed enough to win at the line of scrimmage, tends to lock on to targets, is more of a thrower than a precision passer, forces throws into traffic.”

The above analysis, by the “NFL veteran,” seems more apt for the Allen of old—perhaps 2019—than the Allen of today. Allen, of course, still makes dumb decisions from time to time, but the criticism of his football IQ—which has been a much-vaunted criticism in recent years—is just as inaccurate today as it was when it first surfaced. He also threads the needle multiple times per game; just because he prefers to trust his talent and occasionally goes for the “big play” doesn’t mean he’s incapable of being a precision passer.

It’s hard to be too upset about a player ranked in the top three at his position, especially when the person at the top of the list is so obvious and indisputable. Allen has retained his ranking from last season, as he ranks third on the 2023 list, once again behind Mahomes and Burrow.

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And his ranking below Burrow is debatable. Allen is coming off a season in which he led the NFL with 44 touchdowns, the fourth straight season in which he threw for 40-plus touchdowns (an NFL record). He led his team to its fifth straight playoff appearance and put his team within moments of an AFC Championship Game appearance. Burrow is coming off an injury-plagued campaign in which he played in just 10 games.

It is… bold Burrow remains ranked above Allen after his injury-plagued season, but he, too, hasn’t seen a change in his ranking from last season. In what has been a mixed year for Buffalo’s offense, which saw a midseason coordinator change, perhaps league officials simply haven’t seen enough from Allen to definitively say he’s better than Burrow.

The quarterback position ultimately comes down to preference and what works best for a particular team’s offense. Buffalo probably wouldn’t trade Allen for any package that was offered to them. While he could have been No. 2 on this list, No. 3 isn’t too bad. The Bills and Bengals aren’t scheduled to meet in the 2024 regular season, so if Allen is eager to prove to league officials that he’s objectively better than Burrow, he’ll have to wait for a potential playoff encounter.

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