ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — It is, unquestioned, the most important position in pro football.

Thus, not surprisingly, many of the questions directed at Bills’ first-year coach Sean McDermott and new general manager Brandon Beane at their season-ending press conference were specifically about the Bills’ future quarterback.

It’s likely, both of Buffalo’s key front office hires, already have an opinion, but chose not to share them in deference to their evaluation process of the team’s coaches and players.

But most outsiders have already concluded that, after three seasons, Tyrod Taylor has merely shown he’s not the QB who will lead the Bills to the next level.

Still only 28, and in his physical prime, some of the former Virginia Tech star’s numbers are compelling. In 45 games with Buffalo, he had an impressive 51-19 touchdown-to-interception ratio. But critics argue that his reluctance to throw over the middle, or down the field, mitigated those numbers. And, each season, his TD pass totals have dropped from 20, to 17, to 14 this year. Worse, Tyrod’s main weapon, his legs, were the least productive in his three seasons, 454 yards, compared to 568 and 580 his first two years.

A bright guy, Taylor’s biggest shortcoming was a lack of field and situational awareness and that never seemed to improve in his time with the Bills.

But while the quick fix is merely to waive him before mid-March, that would leave Buffalo with only two quarterbacks heading into free agency and the draft: Nathan Peterman, last April’s fifth-round choice, and Joe Webb, a career backup.

The thinking is that Buffalo will use one of its two first-round selections to draft a quarterback and acquire a former starter as a bridge to the two young QBs. Taylor could actually fill that role, but he’d be a tough sell to Bills fans who have already concluded he’s not a franchise quarterback, to say nothing of his being an $18 million cap hit next season.

But when asked about Taylor’s status, Beane pointed out, “ We’re not satisfied with the whole offense … it wasn’t just about Tyrod. There’s a lot of hands in the cookie jar, so to speak, and Sean and I (are)  going to talk about everything. We’re far from a finished product.”

Of Taylor’s skills, he added, “Tyrod has a lot of ability and we saw some of those things this year. But he’ll tell you, he’s got weaknesses to work on just like a lot of other guys. The great thing about Tyrod (is that) you can never question his work ethic. The guy’s in here early, often, he’s watching film, he’s stretching, he’s in with the trainer – he does so many good things.

“He gives himself the best chance to succeed on the field by what he does off (the field). I have no doubt he’s going to continue to improve.”

Of course, McDermott was reminded of his ill-fated decision to start Peterman at Los Angeles in Week 11 in what seemed an indication that Taylor wouldn’t be back next season.

“I know why we did what we did,” McDermott said. “Brandon and I sat down that week and discussed what was in the best interests of this football team, like we do with every decision we make. That was, we felt, the right decision at that time for this football team.”

Of course, when Peterman tossed a record five interceptions in the first half, McDermott, in what seemed an embarrassing concession, started Taylor after intermission.

“The best I can tell you is we’re always going to do what we feel is best for this football team and this organization,” he maintained.

But Beane conceded that with two picks each in the first (21st and 22nd) and second (53rd and 56th) rounds and one each in the third and fourth plus two in the fifth, Buffalo is well-positioned for the draft.

“The good thing is we have a lot of draft capital and we can stay there and pick, we can move up, we can move back, we can do a lot of different things,” he said.  “We’ve seen these college guys on the field, but we’ve yet to meet any of them and know who they are. You rank these guys (from) what you see on the film, but until you know them and know how they know the game. There’s so many layers of what it takes to play quarterback in this league. (But) it’s too early for me to answer what we would do.”

Of the quarterback situation, McDermott conceded, “We’d like to have a veteran in the room for a lot of reasons, one of which is experience on the field, another of which is leadership, the intangibles that go with some of these veteran players.”

To which Beane added, “A couple of names that come to mind … you’ve got Peyton Manning who played immediately and you’ve got Aaron Rodgers who didn’t play immediately. Every situation is unique, and so you have to consider your situation. But you’re looking to always surround (your team) with leaders and guys who have been there before, whether that guy is playing on the field, or he’s just helping in the classroom and on the field.”

Right now, of course, most Bills fans would agree Buffalo needs quarterback help “on the field.”

(Chuck Pollock, a Times Herald sports columnist, can be reached at cpollock@oleantimesherald.com)