ORCHARD PARK — We could have guessed late last Sunday afternoon.

Seeing the hit Bills quarterback Josh Allen took on his right (throwing) elbow during Buffalo’s final possession against the Jets in a 20-17 loss at the Meadowlands, it was hard not to conclude he would likely miss some time.

All week long, whenever asked whether Allen would play tomorrow afternoon against the Vikings at Highmark Stadium, coach Sean McDermott stuck with the mantra “he’s day-to-day, hour-to-hour … we’ll see.”

And the drama drags on. After missing practice Wednesday and Thursday, the two crucial preparation workouts, Allen was listed as limited for Friday’s walk-through and questionable for the game.

Maybe McDermott was being a bit disingenuous, mostly because he was playing the time-honored coaches’ game. When the starting quarterback is injured, play up the uncertainty so that the upcoming opponent’s coaching staff has to prepare for two QBs rather than one.

In Allen’s case, though, the Bills have a $258 million, six-year investment in one of the NFL’s elite QBs, and rushing him back into the lineup, with an arm injury on a cold, blustery afternoon with possible snow showers, seems beyond risky, to say nothing of his seemingly being ill-prepared.

HENCE, Buffalo’s QB against Minnesota could still be 34-year-old backup Case Keenum, a 10-year veteran whom the Bills acquired from Cleveland for a seventh-round draft pick last March. And if used and he can keep McDermott’s ship righted until Allen’s return, that trade will be a steal.

As reserve quarterbacks go, Keenum is one of the Top 10 in the league based on resume.

The 6-foot-1, 215-pound native of Brownwood, Texas, had a stellar career at the University of Houston, where he set NCAA records for career passing yards (over 19,000) and touchdown passes (155). Still, he went undrafted and signed to stay in his college town with the Texans.

After two years with Houston, he spent the next two with the Rams, one each in St. Louis and Los Angeles. Then came one-season stops in Minnesota, Denver and Washington ended by two years with the Browns before the trade.

WHAT THE Bills liked about him was that he brought quality experience that Matt Barkley, Buffalo’s No. 3 QB, didn’t offer. Barkley, in his second stint with the Bills, would be tomorrow’s backup if Allen can’t go.

Keenum’s career numbers aren’t bad.

He’s played in 78 NFL games, starting 64, going 29-35 in those. Over that time Keenum has 78 touchdown passes with 48 interceptions and an 85.2 passer rating which is a bit below the league norm but not bad considering the itinerant nature of his time as a pro.

His career stats also have one glowing season. In 2017, he was 11-3 as a starter for Minnesota after an injury to Sam Bradford — 22 touchdown passes, seven interceptions, 98 passer rating — taking the Vikings to the playoffs. In the postseason opener against New Orleans, Keenum connected with current teammate Stefon Diggs for the Miracle in Minneapolis. On the final play of regulation, trailing 24-23 and under heavy pressure, he heaved a 61-yard touchdown pass to Diggs to snatch victory from the Saints.

NOW KEENUM could be charged with replacing one of the NFL’s top quarterbacks against his former team, which merely owns the league’s second-best record, 7-1, and is riding a six-game win streak.

“There’s things that Josh does well, and there’s things that Case does well, and some of that is overlap,” McDermott said of the skills of Allen and Keenum. “You have your system, and without getting too far down that road into potential strategy areas, we believe in Case, he’s here for a reason.”

From Keenum’s standpoint, he’s been here before, and though McDermott hasn’t officially announced Allen won’t play, he’s been preparing to start since Tuesday.

“I feel great,” he said. “I did the same thing I do every week: I prepare to play every week, every day, every period, every practice, every meeting, so it’s the same.

“I’ve been in every situation you can be in. Competing for a third (No. 3 QB), wound up starting a full year, being a franchise guy, being a backup, getting pulled in for a couple games and back out. I’ve been kind of all over the place when it comes to a lot of that.”

But come tomorrow, Bills’ nation hopes he’s at his absolute best if needed.

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