The fall of EJ Manuel may sink to a new depth, as reports are surfacing that Tyrod Taylor, a former sixth-round pick who has never started a game before, has the same shot at starting Week 1 for the Buffalo Bills that Manuel has.
General manager Doug Whaley said he expects Manuel to perform in camp and take the job, but that it will be an open competition between Manuel, Taylor, and Matt Cassel. "I look at it this way, in this business controversy sells," Whaley said.
"The more controversy that you can drum up then the more interesting people are going to be with whoever brought this idea to the lexicon of thinking. So for us we're excited about the future of all three of those guys. It's going to be a great competition."
Manuel has started 14 games since being taken 16th overall in the 2013 draft, way ahead of where he was projected to land. He's thrown 16 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in that time, and completed 58.6 percent of his passes in that span.
"I look for him to come in and compete and try to take the job," Whaley said. "Everybody has got an equal footing. It's a clean slate for all four of our quarterbacks. We're not tied to anybody. We just want the best man to start. It's exciting for us."
Taylor will also have to overcome Cassel, who once won 11 games with the New England Patriots while taking over for Tom Brady. Last season went poorly for him with the Minnesota Vikings though; he threw three touchdowns and four interceptions in three starts, and only completed 57 percent of his passes.
Taylor has never thrown more than 30 passes in an NFL season, and has zero touchdowns and two picks for his career. He was a standout at Virginia Tech, however, showing good accuracy by throwing 24 touchdowns and only five interceptions as a rookie. He also rushed for more than 2,000 yards in his four seasons with the Hokies.
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