The Buffalo Bills traded their overall No. 12, No. 53, and No. 56 picks to move up to the seventh rank in the draft order to pick Wyoming’s Josh Allen in the 2018 NFL Draft. Allen’s selection received mixed responses from experts, as NFL Network analysts gave it a B grade.
However, Allen received the harshest criticism from former Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Jalen Ramsey. When Allen was informed of it by GQ reporters in August 2018, he calmly responded and delivered a clear message to Ramsey.
“No. I didn’t. That’s the first I’ve heard of it. He’s not on my team, he’s not my teammate. You know. Don’t bother me.” said Allen.
“I don’t care. It doesn’t bother me one bit. I care about what my teammates think of me when I step on the field. Ultimately, I’m trying to win football games and trying to be the best quarterback for this team as possible.”
After Allen’s selection as the No. 7 draft pick, Ramsey was asked for his response, and he called Allen “trash.”
“I think [Josh] Allen is trash. I don’t care what nobody say. He’s trash. And it’s gonna show too. That’s a stupid draft pick to me.”
Though Ramsey and Allen never faced each other during their collegiate careers, Ramsey had strong opinions on Allen’s skills. He said,
“He played at Wyoming. Every time they played a big school—like, they played Iowa State, which is not a big school in my opinion,” Ramsey added. “He threw five interceptions, and they lost by a couple touchdowns or something like that.”
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Ramsey’s critique of Josh Allen’s skill set was valid to an extent. Allen was known for his dual-threat abilities and strong arm, but his passing accuracy was questionable. Hence, he was compared to Carolina Panthers QB Cam Newton by NFL Draft analysts.
In a 2018 interview, Allen acknowledged his shortcomings and said,
“I know I’ve got a lot of flaws as a quarterback. The accuracy, of course. Being able to put the ball where it needs to be put at any given time.”
However, Allen improved his passing accuracy from 52.8% to 69.2% in two years in the NFL, thanks to Chris Hess, founder of Biometrek. Allen won his first NFL MVP award last season and Ramsey’s opinion of Josh Allen has changed drastically now.
