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Bills to Start QB Nathan Peterman vs. Bears if Derek Anderson Out Injured
November 2, 2018
Nathan Peterman will be the Buffalo Bills' starting quarterback for Sunday's Week 9 game against the Chicago Bears if Derek Anderson isn't cleared to play after suffering a concussion in a 25-6 loss to the New England Patriots on Monday night.
Bills head coach Sean McDermott provided the update Friday but refused to officially rule out Anderson, per Joe Buscaglia of WKBW.
Quite frankly, the Bills don't have much of a choice.
Rookie Josh Allen, whom Buffalo selected with the seventh overall pick in the 2018 NFL draft, remains sidelined with an elbow injury. The only other option is Matt Barkley, but he was just signed Wednesday and hasn't thrown a regular-season pass since 2016.
So the Bills are likely stuck turning back to Peterman, who's endured a disastrous start to his pro career since getting picked in the fifth round of the 2017 draft.
The 24-year-old University of Pittsburgh product threw five interceptions during his infamous first start last November against the Los Angeles Chargers. The Bills named him the starter to open 2018, but the results haven't been much better, lowlighted by a game-losing pick-six against the Houston Texans last month.
In all, he's completed 45.7 percent of his throws for 360 yards with three touchdowns and nine interceptions across seven appearances (three starts).
Peterman, who said he's "always ready" when an opportunity to play arises, is hopeful his latest foray into the lineup will yield better results.
"My thing is [that] I take it one day at a time," he told reporters Wednesday. "I'm ready to go win a game and be my best every time I take that field. I'm thankful every time I take that field."
All told, the Bills' quarterbacks as a whole have been terrible in 2018, compiling just three touchdown passes and 13 interceptions during the team's 2-6 start.
The chances of Peterman reversing that troublesome trend in the face of a Bears pass rush led by Khalil Mack are minuscule.