Whenever you compare anyone to seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady, it may turn some heads. But Buffalo Bills' field general Josh Allen is one of the few quarterbacks in the league who is worthy of such a comparison.
Bills' general manager Brandon Beane joined ESPN's 'Pat McAfee Show' Tuesday to discuss the outlook for the Bills following the 2025 NFL Draft. Beane had a much calmer interaction with McAfee and his crew than he did with Buffalo sports radio station WGR550 on Monday.
The main point that Beane was able to talk through, and not rant through, on Tuesday was that Brady's teams in New England rarely relied on big-time receivers, aside from the days of Randy Moss with the Patriots. And although it can be hard for a GM to give credit to a divisional rival, Beane noted New England's model as one he's been replicating in Buffalo with Allen under center.
"Look at Tom Brady, when we're talking about some of these teams who have won Super Bowls," said Beane on Tuesday's episode.
"Look at New England. How many great, historic receivers did they have in their Super Bowl teams? But the Patriots, they were good up front, they had a good quarterback, they always had some type of run game. ... There's 100 different ways you can build it, and we're not against good receivers.
"When you're paying Josh Allen what you're paying him, you've got to make some concessions somewhere."
And not for nothing, it's hard to argue against that. The Bills were good in the trenches, yielding a league-low 14 sacks and clearing the way for the ninth-best rushing attack in football. Yes, the receiving corps could have produced more, but without a true No. 1 receiver in Stefon Diggs, Allen posted the best season of his NFL career, leading to his first MVP win.
But that does not mean Beane does not have confidence in the receivers currently on the roster.
"We like our receivers, we feel strong about our receivers," Beane said. "And, in our opinion, it wasn't the deepest receiver class to be trying to peg a player that would fit in our top four."
