Buffalo Bills: Nathan Peterman decision is part of building culture that started a long time ago

The Buffalo Bills have officially gone ahead and named Nathan Peterman their starting QB. There are a million things that can be said about this but it is all part of the team being consistent in building their culture.

The Buffalo Bills open the season on Sunday in Baltimore against the Ravens with Nathan Peterman as the starting QB.

The decision is a riveting one, but not a surprising one. Josh Allen has dazzled in camp and looked fine, but let’s leave the element of the surprise on how he would do for a while.

Yes, we know Peterman “earned” the job by emerging through the cracks in camp and being the workhorse of the preseason. All those decisions did and should factor into why he will get to start his first regular-season opener.

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All of that sounds great. Quite frankly, it is how those decisions should be made. However, this Peterman decision goes well beyond all of that. He is not only the best QB on the Bills’ roster, he is the beneficiary of the culture the Bills are trying to build.

As soon as Brandon Beane and Sean McDermott took over, they have made swooping decisions.

Last year, the Bills decided to bench pro-bowler Tyrod Taylor in favor of their new starter. They also traded some of their coveted draft picks, that they already got through trade for Kelvin Benjamin.

This is all after blowing up their roster going into last season by trading Sammy Watkins and Ronald Darby.

After the playoff game, in what might have been the worst offensive show ever put on national television, they fired their offensive coordinator.

The two-headed decision makers, Bills fans often dub as “McBeane” has made a lot of changes. Those changes often needed to be made like trading Marcell Dareus last year. Others, like trading Watkins, were random.

But, when looking at all the moves, and let’s throw in trading up in the first round of this year’s draft twice, have in common? What is the common theme and element?

To never be satisfied at just the playoffs and having “good enough” players. To put it more bluntly, to win the Super Bowl.

That is every single team’s goal. But, for a while, it never felt like the Bills’ goal. But, from day one, it has been “McBeane’s” goal.

By starting Peterman, they are showing that they are consistently pursuing what they said they were.

Now, what does all of this have to do with Nathan Peterman?

Everything. Even last year when Peterman got the green light to start the Bills were in the middle of a playoff race, they were doing good.

But, there was still no satisfaction in that. The Bills knew that by starting Peterman they could either get better or marginally worse.

Neither of those happened, we know what did 5 INTs and the internet blowing up later happened.

So, fast forward to right now. The Bills still only care about winning the Super Bowl, not just getting there.

Josh Allen is the better QB. He is the future and will have his time.

But, for a team whose first four games include going to Baltimore, home against the Chargers, away in Minnesota, then again on the road in Green Bay, the QB is doomed either way. Not even Tom Brady could walk away from that unraveled.

So, here we are again, by starting Peterman over Allen the Bills would either be better or marginally worse. This time, there will be no 5 INTs.

Josh Allen is not Tyrod Taylor. Allen is not a veteran QB who has had opportunity after opportunity to start. He needs to be saved and needs to be set up to succeed, not fail.

He would fail, at least a few times early on this season. As for Peterman, he can fail he has before, but he still might not. Who knows?

But, at the end of the day, this is still all about one thing: winning the Super Bowl. It might not happen this year. It likely will never be with Peterman anyway.

But, by starting Peterman it means they not only think he is the best right now, it means they are waiting for Allen to be in a better situation.

Do you want to know what happens when a QB like Allen, with all the talent he has, is set up to win in the long-term? He will win in the long-term. A Super Bowl becomes more realistic.

That is the Buffalo BIlls objective. Even when the Bills were winning last year, it was never “win now” rather “win forever” it still is.

Now, Peterman starts. Maybe even all year. But, the Bills think Allen is the guy so why settle for “good enough” they didn’t then and will not now. Risking Peterman is fine. That is the whole point of the decision.

Risking Allen, would not be fine. It would make their end goal more difficult to reach.

For once, making a decision to have Allen win by not starting him is okay. Besides, this was the culture at One Bills Drive well before Allen even arrived.

The Bills say they want to be a champion. All fine and dandy to hear. However, by starting Peterman, they are showing that they are consistently pursuing what they said they were.

Starting Peterman is consistent with every other decision they have made.

Oh, and if Peterman proves to be good but “not good enough” you can expect the same thing to happen to him what happened to the man he replaced last year and it goes back to figuring out how to be the “best”.

Next. 5 Best Bills moments from last season. dark

Trust the process does mean something. Who would’ve known?

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