ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- After the Buffalo Bills selected quarterback Nathan Peterman in the fifth round of the draft Saturday, coach Sean McDermott indicated that Tyrod Taylor must earn the team's starting quarterback job this summer.
"Competition is there," McDermott said Saturday when asked how much Peterman could compete for the starting role this season. "You earn the right to start on this football team."
Taylor restructured his contract to remain with the Bills this offseason, taking a $10 million pay cut in 2017. The Bills' starting quarterback since 2015, Taylor is slated to count $9.7 million against the team's salary cap this season.
After the upcoming season, the Bills can release Taylor and save a significant portion of his $18 million salary-cap hit. That could open the door for a younger quarterback to replace Taylor in 2018 if the seventh-year veteran does not prove himself as a viable long-term option at quarterback.
The Bills picked Peterman with the No. 171 selection Saturday, marking the first time since 1985 and 1986 that Buffalo took quarterbacks in consecutive drafts. The Bills drafted former Ohio State quarterback Cardale Jones in the fourth round in 2016.
"They're going to compete, just like the rest of them," McDermott said of Peterman's and Jones' standing on the roster. "Nothing is promised to anyone. We're going to compete every day. [Even] I've got to earn my spot. You guys have heard me say that before."
Buffalo also signed veteran quarterback T.J. Yates this offseason.