The Buffalo Bills traded up and landed Wyoming quarterback Josh Allen with the seventh overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, and it also led to a radio producer in the area surrendering his gig.
Ryan Gates worked in WGR 550 - a Sports radio program in Buffalo - as a radio producer. He made this vow a month before the draft - shortly after starting QB Tyrod Taylor was sent to the Cleveland Browns.
And wouldn't you have it. The Browns would draft Baker Mayfield with the first pick, while Josh Rosen would fall to the Arizona Cardinals. Buffalo moved up to nab Allen with the seventh pick. On Monday, and Gates announced the end of his time with WGR 550:
Give Gates credit for being a man of his word, because giving up a luxurious job of being a radio producer for a sports network is gutsy. Nonetheless, Gates willingly put his job on the line and wouldn't back away from it. He's a man full of honesty and integrity, and those are two things he can put on his resume.
The Bills made the playoffs for the first time in 1999 this past season, but the team clearly didn't view Tyrod Taylor as their long-term answer. In what has been heralded as one of the best draft classes for quarterbacks in history, Buffalo ensured they got their hands on Allen.
But Allen is no sure thing to start right away. The Bills signed former Alabama quarterback and Cincinnati Bengals backup, A.J. McCarron. He was a solid fill-in for the injured Andy Dalton in 2015, and McCarron will be given the chance to start should he shine in training camp.
But whether or not Allen shines as an NFL quarterback is for another day. For now, the fact the Bills drafted him means a popular network in Buffalo will need to find a new radio producer.
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