5 Matt Barkley QB

Barkley appears unlikely to rejoin the Bills in 2021 after the team signed Mitchell Trubisky last week.

Barkley has served as Buffalo's No. 2 quarterback for the last three seasons; in other words the entire Josh Allen era. He's only seen action in eight games over that time, and while he was serviceable in his limited action, the Bills seemingly desire having a more experienced NFL starter in the mix should Allen ever miss time. Barkley was always highly regarded in the locker room, and it's possible the Bills could bring him back as a No. 3, but the team is more likely to use that roster spot to develop Jake Fromm.

Barkley took 53 snaps in 2020, completing 11 of 21 passes for 197 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

The 2020 campaign was the ultimate Josh Allen Show, so even the most faithful Bills fan would have a hard time remembering when Barkley's 21 passes happened, but they did take place over the course of three mop-up duty appearances. Barkley won't wow anyone on the field after being in the league since 2013, but he's served as a good voice for Allen and knows the Buffalo offense as well as anyone, so it'd be a bit of a surprise if the cash-strapped Bills turn to a higher profile backup for 2021. The same quarterback room of Allen, Barkley and Jake Fromm seems the most likely course of action.

While the Bills plan to suit up Josh Allen for Sunday's finale against the Dolphins, there's a likelihood Barkley sees meaningful snaps in the contest, Michael Giardi of NFL Network reports.

This makes sense, as several starters have already been made inactive in a game that can only determine seeding for the Bills, while Allen needs only some modest totals to set or extend some franchise records. We would not be shocked if the Bills have Allen out of there by halftime or even earlier while Barkley sees action with a number of other backups. Note that Miami needs to win this game and the weather is expected to be far from optimal.

Barkley will have a new teammate in the quarterback group after the Bills added Georgia's Jake Fromm in the fifth round of the draft this weekend.

Fromm comes with a higher pedigree than the usual fifth-rounder following a tremendous career at Georgia, and while he's seen as a smart guy and excellent reader of defenses, it may also be difficult for the youngster to even approach Barkley's familiarity with the Buffalo offense in what could be a shortened offseason due to COVID-19. More likely, Fromm will have to prove he's a better candidate than Davis Webb and hope the Bills keep three quarterbacks on the active roster instead of two. Still, Fromm is a promising enough guy that he adds a question mark to Barkley's long-term status with the team.

Barkley completed 18 of 35 passes for 232 yards and two interceptions while rushing twice for minus-4 yards and losing one of two fumbles in Sunday's 13-6 loss to the Jets.

Barkley came in under center after Josh Allen presided over two scoreless drives to open the contest. The Bills aren't known for their offense to begin with and rested key starters on that side of the ball, so Barkley didn't have much to work with and it showed. This was the backup quarterback's second appearance of the season, as Allen has managed to stay mostly healthy. Don't expect to see an appearance from Barkley this postseason, but he'll remain under contract as Allen's backup in 2020.

Barkley is expected to see playing time in Sunday's game against the Jets, Chris Brown of the Bills' official site reports.

With the Bills locked in as the AFC's No. 5 playoff seed, there is no need for starting quarterback Josh Allen to play the entire game against the Jets. That could carve out a role for Barkley, although how significant that role might be is still murky. The situation should become clearer as coach Sean McDermott reveals his game plan for Week 17.

Barkley's teammate Josh Allen has been cleared from the concussion protocol and the tentative plan is for Allen to start Sunday's game in Tennessee.

That means Barkley will move back into the No. 2 role, where he serves as one of the more valuable backups in the league given that he's shown a knack to run the Buffalo offense, as well as Allen's propensity to run the ball into dangerous traffic.

Barkley's teammate Josh Allen practiced fully Friday but has still not cleared the league's concussion protocol.

We'll get an announcement either way prior to Sunday morning and possibly as soon as Saturday, while Barkley will start for the Bills in Tennessee if his younger teammate does not receive clearance.

With Josh Allen still working his way back from a concussion, Barkley took first-team reps during practice Wednesday, Chris Brown of the Bills' official site reports.

Allen still has a decent chance to pass through all stages of the protocol and return for the Week 5 contest in Tennessee, though with that being no sure thing either, the Bills will be forced to prepare for the Titans with both quarterbacks. If the team decides to play it extra safe with Allen no matter what the doctors say, it could use the Week 6 bye to have him fully fresh for the next stretch of the season. That said, it seems like a slight stretch to think the Bills would put their franchise signal-caller on the bench if he were cleared to play. The situation will offer more clues as the practice week progresses.

Barkley came in for the injured Josh Allen (concussion) and completed nine of 16 passes for 127 yards and an interception in Sunday's 16-10 loss to the Patriots.

Barkley was called into action after Josh Allen took a vicious helmet-to-helmet hit early in the fourth quarter. He immediately led the team down to the 2-yard line before turning it over on downs. That's as close as the Bills would come to erasing a six-point deficit, as a Barkley interception in New England territory with 1:27 to play sealed their fate. Allen went to the locker room under his own power but couldn't clear the concussion protocol. Barkley would start in Week 5 against the Titans if Allen is unable to clear the protocol by then.

Barkley completed eight of 10 passes with a touchdown pass and no interceptions in Friday's preseason win over the Panthers, good for a 145.8 passer rating.

Despite two excellent preseason games, there's no chance the veteran Barkley will be overtaking Josh Allen for the starting QB job, unless the latter gets hurt or struggles horribly for much of the season on a team whose defense keeps it in playoff contention. However, Barkley is locked into the No. 2 job -- between his last few outings dating back to the 2018 season, he's proving the Bills should still be in capable hands if he gets forced into action at any point.

Barkley completed nine of 14 passes for 126 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions in Thursday's preseason win over the Colts. He finished with a 117.0 rating.

The Bills are set at the top quarterback spot with Josh Allen, now and in the future, but Barkley has really cemented himself as a strong backup, dating back to a huge Week 10 performance over the Jets last season. He has no competition for the main backup role for 2019.

Barkley appears to hold an early edge over Tyree Jackson for the Bills' No. 2 quarterback role, Jay Skurski of The Buffalo News reports.

Though he boasts some intriguing physical tools, Jackson went undrafted in April, ensuring that he would face an uphill battle in his efforts to break camp with the Bills. While Jackson will still have the opportunity to showcase his skills in the preseason, Barkley has already shown he can be a serviceable No. 2 should something happen to Josh Allen. The USC product notably guided the Bills to a 41-10 victory Week 10 over the Jets last season, tossing two touchdowns in the outing.

Barkley signed a two-year contract extension with the Bills on Friday.

Barkley joined Buffalo in late October when Josh Allen (elbow) and Derek Anderson (concussion) were both injured and made one start to bring an end to the Nathan Peterman experiment. The 28-year-old completed 15 of 25 passes for 232 yards and two touchdowns in that outing and has since overtaken Anderson and the since-released Peterman as the team's No. 2 quarterback. Health permitting, Allen will serve as the Bills' top signal-caller for the foreseeable future, leaving Barkley as his primary understudy through 2020.

Barkley's teammate Josh Allen had a full week of practice this week and has been deemed fit to start Sunday against the Jaguars.

Barkley lit it up against the Jets in Week 10 ahead of the Bills' bye, but the future of this franchise lies in Allen's right arm so the former will step aside for the rookie, even though if the Bills had one win-at-all-costs game for one week, Barkely surprisingly might give them a better chance at winning given how comfortable he looked with the offense. With Derek Anderson unable to return from a concussion this week, Barkley is the clear-cut No. 2 should anything happen to the rookie against the Jaguars' still-dangerous defense.

Barkley's teammate Josh Allen (elbow) will put in a full practice Monday and is on track to start the Bills' Week 12 game against the Jaguars, Mike Rodak of ESPN.com reports.

Barkley opened plenty of eyes with a surprise two-touchdown, no-interception performance in the Week 10 win over the Jets, but Allen is the future of the 3-7 Bills and coach Sean McDermott wants to get the rookie as much time on the field as possible. Allen could always suffer a setback, while at the very least Barkley looks like he's quickly leapfrogged Nathan Peterman (since waived) and Derek Anderson (concussion) to find a relatively permanent home on the depth chart.

Despite Barkley's impressive performance against the Jets on Sunday, head coach Sean McDermott said Monday that quarterback Josh Allen (elbow) will return to the starting lineup when healthy.

Few predicted the kind of success Barkley would find against the Jets in a game that marked the quarterback's first live action since he was with the Bears in 2016. However, Buffalo's top priority is developing its prized rookie, and it's now clear Barkley's one-game renaissance won't deter the team from its long-term plan. While Barkley likely has done enough to establish himself as the clear No. 2 option over Nathan Peterman and Derek Anderson (concussion), he'll only have fantasy value going forward if Allen is forced to miss any more games. With Buffalo on bye Week 11, Allen has roughly two more weeks to bounce back from his elbow injury. McDermott indicated Monday that Allen has already resumed a throwing regimen and is making daily progress in his recovery.

Barkley completed 15 of 25 passes for 232 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday's 41-10 win over the Jets.

Barkley proved to be an immediate upgrade over Nathan Peterman, hitting Robert Foster for a 47-yard gain on the game's first play. He later found eligible left tackle Dion Dawkins for a seven-yard touchdown in the second quarter and hit Zay Jones for an eight-yard score in the third. In addition to frustrating owners who streamed the Jets defense this week, Barkley likely earned himself a shot at retaining Buffalo's starting quarterback job coming out of the Week 11 bye, though Josh Allen (elbow) is the clear long-term starter and appears close to being game ready.

Barkley will start Sunday's game against the Jets.

With both Josh Allen (elbow) and Derek Anderson (concussion) already ruled out, Barkley will leap Nathan Peterman on the depth chart after the latter's career-long struggles continued in the 41-9 loss to the Bears in Week 9. Barkley, who will make his first NFL start since 2016, posted an unsightly 8:14 TD:INT while completing under 60 percent of his passes in seven games for the Bears that season. Even in the deepest of leagues, Barkley is makes for a difficult fantasy play given his lack of prior NFL success and dearth of weapons.

Vic Carucci of The Buffalo News states there's a decent chance Barkley will receive the start against the Jets after working with the starting unit at times during Friday's practice, coupled with the fact that Josh Allen (elbow) is listed as questionable.

Allen is clearly the team's best option, but he's questionable and the Bills have a bye in Week 11, so they might just take the conservative route with their franchise player. The team seems to have moved away from turnover-happy Nathan Peterman, so with Derek Anderson (concussion) already ruled out for the game, Barkley could be the only option left. Running back LeSean McCoy made some comments to the media Friday that may have tipped off the fact Barkley could be starting. All that said, the Bills would love it if Allen was 100 percent healthy, so with all the clues presented we'll place the odds of Sunday's start being 45 percent Allen, 45 percent Barkley and 10 percent Peterman.