Buffalo Bills, if only by default, are turning to Josh Allen

It was inevitable, but the Buffalo Bills are officially turning to Josh Allen for Week 2 against the Los Angeles Chargers.

A 47-3 Week 1 loss to the Baltimore Ravens, and a 0.0 passer rating in the game, was not enough for Bills head coach Sean McDermott to immediately bench Nathan Peterman. But a need to look at the tape yielded the obvious decision, as ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reported Wednesday morning rookie Josh Allen will get the start Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers.

The Bills are talent-deficient pretty much across the board offensively, and perhaps nowhere more than along the offensive line. Peterman took three sacks last Sunday, as did Allen in less than a half of action as he went 6-for-15 for 74 yards (a 56.0 passer rating) along with 26 rushing yards.

Allen enters the NFL with accuracy concerns, and playing behind the sieve that is Buffalo’s offensive line will bring back memories of David Carr. The elder Carr took a league-record 76 sacks as a rookie for the expansion Houston Texans in 2002, then followed that by absorbing league-high sack totals in 2004 and 2005.

The Chargers have two of the best edge rushers in the NFL, in Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram. But Bosa missed Week 1 with a foot injury, and he seems set to miss multiple games as he gets a second opinion this week. Bosa being unavailable on Sunday, or at least operating at less than full strength, will obviously help the Bills’ line keep Allen clean.

A preseason injury to A.J. McCarron, and an eventual trade that sent him to the Raiders, opened the door for Allen to start Week 1. It was a good idea to let Peterman take some lumps though, against the Ravens and perhaps longer. But his showing in the season opener made a change necessary, and the Josh Allen era will get an early start in Buffalo.