Locker Room Pressure Forces Buffalo Bills to Start Derek Anderson

Nobody could delay the inevitable, as the Buffalo Bills have officially announced that Derek Anderson will start at quarterback for week seven. Last week, Bills starting quarterback, Josh Allen went down with a rather severe elbow injury that gave him the option to pursue surgery or not.

While Allen will not undergo surgery, he will be forced to miss multiple weeks moving forward. That left the Bills with a tough decision to make at quarterback. It’s either Nathan Peterman or the newly acquired Derek Anderson that will go under center.

First of all, let’s just say this. The Bills are doomed regardless. Even with Allen under center, the teams’ ability to win was questionable. Now, with either Peterman or Anderson under center, the result isn’t going to be favorable. But one thing is for sure though, the Bills are sick and tired of Peterman.

The Locker Room Won the Battle

Coach McDermott: "Josh Allen has an elbow sprain. There is no plan for surgery but he will be week-to-week. Derek Anderson will be our starting QB this week." #GoBills pic.twitter.com/cPRRMknh9r

— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) October 17, 2018

Reports were flying around earlier in the week that if Bills head coach Sean McDermott does in fact, start Peterman this Sunday, then there’s a strong chance that he could find himself losing the locker room. While the frustration would make sense, what other options does McDermott have here?

Let’s see. They could start the second-year veteran Peterman, who has played in six games and has thrown three touchdowns, and nine interceptions. Or they can play Derek Anderson, who has started in four games over the past five years and has thrown for seven touchdowns and five interceptions.

Either way, the situation looks terrible. If Allen were dealing with an injury that requires surgery, then it would probably be best if the Bills made a trade for a quarterback. But as his injury seems to be short-term, they are just going to have to work with what they got. In this case, it’s Derek Anderson.

Fortunately for the sake of the locker room, Anderson gets the start. But what is everybody going to do if it doesn’t go well? They can’t blame McDermott. So let this be a message to the front offices out there. Find yourself a reliable backup for the sake of your locker room. It’s worth it.