Josh Allen’s elbow injury on maybe the best throw of his young career leaves Bills to start Derek Anderson

The Buffalo Bills got an inspiring sign for the progress of their first-round pick Josh Allen when he let a pass rip down the middle of the field to Kelvin Benjamin for 39 yards. It was arguably the best pass of his career so far, but it proved costly because it ended with an elbow injury for Allen. He won’t start in Week 7, and the injury could up costing Allen weeks of play.

Veteran Derek Anderson will start in Allen’s place for now.

The injury came when Allen was hit by both Jadeveon Clowney and Whitney Mercilus after throwing the pass. Allen immediately grabbed at his right arm, but stayed in the game for one more play. After an inaccurate pass on the next play that appeared to cause him pain, Allen took a knee and was replaced in the game by Nathan Peterman.

Allen was evaluated on the sideline before taking a seat on the bench where he remained for the Bills’ next offensive drive. He did not return against the Texans.

While the Bills still haven’t said much, Bills coach Sean McDermott continues to say Allen is “week to week.”

Allen has struggled so far in his NFL career — he was 10 of 17 for 84 yards before his departure Sunday — but losing the rookie quarterback is still bad news for the Bills, who didn’t have a lot of options at quarterback.

The Bills just signed Anderson last week to serve as a mentor to Allen. However, the 35-year-old is now pressed into starting duty for the first time since 2016. He only threw eight passes last year with the Panthers.

He’s still a better choice than Peterman, who has been awful every time he’s been on the field.

Although Peterman stepped up and led the Bills to their first touchdown and lead against the Texans, his two late-game interceptions decided the game. The Texans and Bills were tied 13-13 with 1:34 left in the fourth quarter when he threw a pick-six to Jonathan Joseph. Another interception on the following drive sealed the Bills’ 20-13 loss.