Buffalo Bills Backup QB Kyle Allen Signs With Pittsburgh Steelers

Kyle Allen has signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers, ending any semblance of a quarterback controversy with the Buffalo Bills.

Any controversy surrounding the Buffalo Bills' quarterback situation was literally a passing craze.

Buffalo's spots on the quarterback depth chart seem stable and secure after Monday: Josh Allen's presence obviously speaks for itself while Mitchell Trubisky's reprisal of the backup role seems ready to roll now that Kyle Allen has signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Per Brooke Pryor of ESPN, Steelers general manager Omar Khan announced the addition on Monday at the NFL owners' meetings in Orlando.

Thus ends Kyle Allen's one-year term in Buffalo, where he served the year as the primary understudy to Josh (no relation). He wound up appearing in seven games in what was primarily mop-up duty, his most extensive action coming in Week 3's blowout victory over Washington.

Kyle Allen

Justin Berl/GettyImages

Though he faces an uphill battle to make the Steelers' active roster (having since revamped their own passing situation with Justin Fields and Russell Wilson), Allen is set to continue serving as a veteran backup. Since entering the league as an undrafted free agent out of Texas A&M in 2018, Allen had engaged in fill-in duty with Carolina, Washington, and Houston before settling with the Bills last year.

Upon his Western New York entry, Allen mentioned that Josh Allen was "at the top of the list" of franchise passers he'd prefer to stand behind, having developed a lasting friendship with him as they came up in the league together.

“Not only is he a good friend, but just from a quarterback standpoint around the entire NFL, he’s one of the best in the league," Kyle Allen said in video from the Bills last offseason. "I’ve really respected this franchise over my career in the NFL. We’ve played them probably three or four times. It’s been just a tough, hard-nosed game every time. We’ve played in Buffalo, too. Just the energy in the stadium, the fans, and how tough it is to come in here and win, I just wanted to be a part of something like that.”

With Trubisky, ironically coming over from Pittsburgh, back in the spot behind Josh Allen (returning to the role he prevously held in 2021), practice squad rep Shane Buechele is the only other quarterback stationed on the Buffalo roster.