Buffalo Bills: A Backup Quarterback Will Complete One Stunning Offseason

As injuries are inevitable in the National Football League, it is essential for the Buffalo Bills to sign a decent quarterback to backup Ryan Fitzpatrick. My sincerest apologies to all of the Tyler Thigpen lovers out there, but Buffalo needs to acquire a veteran quarterback in case Fitzpatrick goes down.

Peyton Manning and Brett Favre played over 200 consecutive games each. That is over 12 consecutive seasons without missing a start. In this day and age, quarterbacks are not as fortunate.

Look at last year when Fitzpatrick had broken ribs and tried playing through it.

Stevie Johnson told the Toronto Sun, "I know personally, in the huddle, the worst it got—to my knowledge—is he barely could say a full play under one breath."

So what's the point? Injuries are inevitable in the NFL, especially as a quarterback. Players like Mario Williams hit hard and hit often. Their goal is to rattle the quarterback and get him off his game. Therefore, injuries are bound to occur.

While Johnson was just trying to defend his quarterback, he proved why a proven backup quarterback is essential in 2012. It was not fair to the Bills to have an injured Fitzpatrick leading them on Sundays. His interceptions and poor decision making were most likely a result of his injury.

If Fitzpatrick was unable to perform at a high enough level for Buffalo, he never should have been inserted into those games. And since he was healthy enough to play in those games, he deserves to be judged according to his performance. And that may not be entirely fair, but it is the reality.

Tyler Thigpen had some great moments on a pretty lousy Kansas City Chiefs team. He was under-whelming in Miami and his tenure in Buffalo has been the least bit impressive. He is a great athlete, but should not be trusted if Fitzpatrick went down. There are worse backups than him, but if the Bills are serious about contending in the playoffs this year, they need to be serious about adding depth.

There are several quarterbacks on the market that are cheap and desperate for a job. For the sake of proving my point, guys like Vince Young, AJ Feeley and Donovan McNabb still exist. Trust me, I am not vying for any of these guys to be the starter for Buffalo. Having said that, if Fitzpatrick is hurt or shaken up, these quarterbacks should be able to temporarily take the load on offense.

Ryan Fitzpatrick is the quarterback of the Buffalo Bills, there is no debating that. However, Buffalo must be prepared for all sorts of possibilities next season. If something happens to Fitzpatrick, is Tyler Thigpen really the guy to lead the offense? Buffalo doesn't need to go out and sign a particular player, they just need to add proven depth at the quarterback position. A veteran who has proven himself in the NFL can be affective if Fitzpatrick goes down.

Let's sit back and reflect on Buffalo's magnificent presence in the free-agent market. They made their defensive line perhaps the best in the league. They have depth at various positions. Providing a proven quarterback to back-up Ryan Fitzpatrick is all Buffalo really has left to do.

And when it gets to December, it's way better to be safe than sorry.