ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes was an easy No. 1 pick for Chris Simms, ranking the top quarterbacks heading into the 2021 season for 'Pro Football Talk Live' on NBC Sports.
"He’s the best player in the NFL. We’re talking about a guy that’s got no weakness to his football game," the former NFL quarterback turned analyst said on Tuesday.
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen was next in line - ahead of Super Bowl 45 MVP Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers.
Simms said placing Allen over Rodgers was possibly his most difficult ranking between the second and third spots:
“This was maybe my toughest ranking of all right here. This spot, two and three, was the hardest for me on the whole list. I don’t play favorites, even though (Aaron Rodgers) is my favorite quarterback of all time, and I still think he’s the greatest I’ve ever seen. Rodgers is still so surgical with decision making, accuracy, and all of those types of things. His arm, it’s only behind the two guys that are in front of him in football. It’s still a phenomenal, world-class, game-changing type arm. But, it’s not enough to overcome all the plays Josh Allen makes. It’s unbelievable.
"When you go back and watch it, you certainly could argue that Josh Allen was the MVP of football last year. He made more game-changing, game-saving, unbelievable plays than maybe anybody in football last year, and that’s why he got the (number two) ranking. Yes, Rodgers is more accurate, definitely a little bit more surgical, but not so much more that he makes up for the difference of what Josh Allen brings to the playmaking table. When there was nobody open or the pocket broke down, you could argue that nobody was more dangerous in football than Josh Allen last year in what he did outside the pocket, manipulating coverage, and throwing lasers everywhere.”
Allen told the media last week during mandatory minicamp the standard he holds for himself cannot be matched by anybody else's standard.
"My bar is higher than anything that anybody else can can set for me so I'm very internally driven and doesn't really matter what people say," Allen said. "I care about being the best quarterback that can be for the Bills and best teammate that can be for my teammates."
