Josh Allen’s NFL Draft: Everything You Need To Know

Josh Allen was the 7th overall pick in the 2018 NFL draft.

Josh Allen is an American football quarterback for the Buffalo Bills as of the 2024 NFL season. The Firebaugh, California-born Allen attended Firebaugh High School before enrolling at Reedley College, where he played for one season. He spent next three years of his college at Wyoming.

Josh Allen Draft: Year, Date, Round and Pick Number

Draft Year	Round	Pick Number	NFL Team	Position	College	Conference (College)
2018	1	7	Buffalo Bills	Quarterback	University of Wyoming	Mountain West Conference

Allen was a highly regarded prospect for the 2018 NFL Draft. Allen contemplated declaring for the 2017 NFL Draft but was advised to wait out another year to become a better Draft prospect.

Grading Josh Allen’s NFL Draft

Josh Allen has been a top-grade draft pick for the Buffalo Bills. The team was facing a playoff drought and Josh Allen helped put the Bills back on the map. Allen has led the Bills to every postseason appearance since 2019, along with four consecutive division titles, He also helped Buffalo reach AFC Championship in 2020 season, for the first time since 1995. It is safe to say that Allen is an ‘A’ Grade NFL Draft for the Bills.

Josh Allen’s Draft: How old was Josh Allen when he went to the NFL?

Josh Allen was 21 years old when he got drafted by the Buffalo Bills. He was the third quarterback to be selected in the Draft. Allen became a starter for Wyoming in his second year of college and helped them win the 2017 Idaho Potato Bowl. Allen threw for 1812 yards, 16 touchdown passes, and 6 interceptions in his final year at Wyoming. He entered the 2018 NFL Draft after Wyoming won the Idaho Potato Bowl in December 2017.

Josh Allen’s Draft Bio and Profile

A Draft report is jotted down by NFL scouts which helps prospective teams analyze a player’s capabilities based on their college performances and NFL Combine statistics. Here is a summary of Allen’s Draft Bio.

Josh Allen	Quarterback, University of Wyoming. 6 ft. 4 inches, 237 pounds
Summary	A breakout college football quarterback from the 2016 season. Possesses the physical prowess of an ideal quarterback and had two impressive seasons as a starter for the Wyoming team. There are a few accuracy issues that he needs to sort out. Looks like a top-10 pick prospect for the 2018 NFL Draft.
Positives	Ideal sized NFL quarterback with a very strong arm. Great athletic abilities and excellent mobility. A running threat who is hard to sack. Can vertically stretch the field with spiral throws and quick releases. Throws well on the run and has good strength to break tackles in the pocket.
Negatives	The accuracy of passes is a prominent issue. Needs to improve decision-making and ball security. Still needs some work on finesse throws. There are concerns about him being a clutch player as he has played against lower teams and struggled against better opposition.
NFL Combine Note	40 Yard Dash: 4.75 seconds, 20 Yard Split: 2.74 seconds, 10 Yard Split: 1.59 seconds, Wonderlic: 37 (0-50), Three Cone Drill: 6.90 seconds, Vertical Leap: 33.5 inches, Broad Jump: 9 feet 11 inches & 20 Yard Shuttle: 4.40 seconds

How many quarterbacks were chosen before Josh Allen?

Allen was the third quarterback to be drafted in the 2018 edition of the NFL Draft. Allen was overall pick number 7 in Round 1 of the Draft. Below are the 2 quarterbacks who were drafted ahead of Josh Allen:

Baker Mayfield

Mayfield was pick number 1 of the 2018 NFL Draft and he was drafted by the Cleveland Browns. He helped the team break their playoff drought. Mayfield is a Heisman Trophy winner along with winning many other accolades in his college career. He played for Carolina Panthers and LA Rams before becoming the starting quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2023.

Sam Darnold

Sam Darnold was overall pick number 3 in the 2018 NFL Draft. He was drafted by the New York Jets after impressing for the University of Southern California. He led the California team to a Rose Bowl win in 2017. He is the youngest NFL starting quarterback on an opening day since the NFL-AFL merger. He played for Carolina Panthers after getting traded by the Jets in 2021. As of 2024, Darnold plays for the Minnesota Vikings, after he signed a 1-year $10 million deal with the team in the offseason.

Who was the #1 Pick In The NFL When Josh Allen Got Drafted?

Quarterback Baker Mayfield was the first pick of the 2018 NFL Draft. Cleveland Browns got a great quarterback pick as Mayfield led the team to their first win in 19 games on his NFL debut. He had a great rookie season with the franchise and helped the team break their playoff drought in 2020. Mayfield suffered a right knee contusion in Week 10 of the 2021 season. He missed the remainder of the season. However, he was traded to Carolina Panthers in 2022 and later went on to play for LA Rams before settling in Tampa as the starting quarterback once again in 2023. He led the Buccaneers to a divisional round on the back of streamrolling Philadelphia Eagles in the wild card round. He signed a 3-year contract worth $100 million with the Buccaneers in the 2024 offseason

Who was the Bills' QB before Allen?

Tyrod Taylor was the starting quarterback for the Buffalo Bills before Josh Allen was drafted. He played for the Bills from 2015 to 2017. He was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in 2011 and currently plays for the Houston Texans. Taylor was selected in the Pro Bowl in his first season with the Bills. Taylor suffered injuries throughout his tenure with the Bills before being traded to the Cleveland Browns upon the arrival of Josh Allen. He achieved a career-high 3035 passing yards with the Bills in the 2015 NFL regular season. He also achieved his career-high touchdown passes (20) that season.

Who was the quarterback before Josh Allen at Wyoming?

The quarterback for Wyoming before Josh Allen was Sam Stratton. Sam Stratton was named a part of the All-Conference team in 2013. He did not go for an NFL Draft and did not pursue a footballing career.