Bills likely to Start Jeff Tuel (Who?) Against Pats in Week 1



The Jets quarterback situation is comedy gold. The Bills one is just sad.

Tuel, an undrafted rookie from Washington State, could be pushed into duty thanks to some terrible injury luck by his superiors on the depth chart. 2013 first round pick and presumed starter EJ Manuel is still on crutches following a "minor" knee surgery last week. While Buffalo Head Coach Doug Marrone remains "hopeful" that Manuel can return for Week One, the odds are stacked against this.

Prior to Saturday, the belief was that veteran Kevin Kolb would take a few placeholder starts until Manuel recovers completely. These plans completely went out the window when Kolb suffered the third concussion of his career Saturday night against the Redskins. The play seemed rather innocuous, but the result reportedly could be career threatening for the former Eagle and Cardinal. At the very least, it appears highly unlikely that Kolb takes the field September 8 against New England.

Enter Tuel. The undrafted rookie was no lock to even make the team a month ago, but has solidified his roster spot with a solid preseason (combined 31-43, 299 yards, 2 touchdowns, no interceptions and a 106.6 QB rating). Now the 22 year old finds himself with a chance to be the first undrafted rookie quarterback to ever start Week One, matching up against Tom Brady in his first NFL game.

I'd say good luck, but the Patriots secondary has given up big numbers to guys like Dan Orlovsky, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Chad Henne in recent years. Not to mention that us Pats fans should remember that some unheralded quarterback prospects turn out to be OK if given a chance. Lets just hope the Pats make Tuel look...well, like an undrafted rookie if they do face him September 8.



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