Josh Allen Serving as 3rd-String QB at Bills OTAs

Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott said Thursday rookie quarterback Josh Allen is third on the depth chart behind AJ McCarron and Nathan Peterman during organized team activities.

McDermott told reporters McCarron and Peterman are splitting time with the starters, while the seventh overall pick in the 2018 NFL draft will work with the third-team offense.

The narrative around Allen was consistent throughout the draft process: He possesses high-end arm strength, but his accuracy needs to improve a lot if he's going to find long-term success in the NFL.

McDermott's comments in early May showed the Bills' assessment of the situation was the same as the general consensus.

"Josh has a strong arm; I think we all know that," he told reporters. "I've been around the league long enough to know that it's one of the stronger arms. I'm not going to compare it to some of the guys I've been around. He's got a talented arm, so, within that, there's other areas that are just as important, though, to arm strength, and that's where we have a lot of work to do."

Allen completed 56.3 percent of his throws for 1,812 yards with 16 touchdowns and six interceptions across 11 games in his final season at the University of Wyoming.

Although his play in training camp and the preseason will be more important than in OTAs, his initial placement as the third choice behind McCarron and Peterman does create an uphill battle for him to win the starting job as a rookie.

The Bills likely want to see what they have in McCarron, who they signed as a free agent from the Cincinnati Bengals in March. He's the early favorite to start in Week 1 when Buffalo opens the regular season against the Baltimore Ravens.

Allen will probably battle Peterman, who endured a disastrous rookie campaign that included a five-interception game, for the backup job to open the year. How fast he shows improvement with his ball placement, especially on short and intermediate routes, will determine when he takes over the offense.