A starting quarterback in the NFL gets all of the glory. There is no argument.
But there was no debate when Brandon Allen described his job for the past seven years as an NFL backup "as not all bad." For starters, he is just fine with his home in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
"It's been pretty good actually," Allen said. "Maybe you are not playing, but you are still pretty busy."
The workflow of an NFL backup is twofold. Part of the day is preparing in case the starter goes down. But he's also running the scout team, impersonating the opposition's quarterback.
"You take the scout team reps and then take the mental reps for your offense," he said. "In my mind, it's the best job in the world."
Allen spent the past three seasons as the backup for Cincinnati Bengals star Joe Burrow. He recently signed a contract with the San Francisco 49ers. He's played plenty, partly because Burrow has battled some knee issues and also to take late-game snaps in blowouts.
It's been a lot more fun than his first three seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Los Angeles Rams, when he didn't get in a game. Everything changed when the Denver Broncos claimed him off waivers in 2019 and injuries reduced their quarterback depth.
"It had been almost four years since I played a game," he said of getting his first NFL start when the Broncos beat the Cleveland Browns. "That has to be a pretty memorable moment."
Did it fulfill dreams?
"I have to say I didn't really dream of playing in the NFL," he said. "I grew up in Fayetteville. We didn't have an NFL team in Arkansas. I don't think I ever thought about playing in the NFL growing up.
"Really, I thought of playing high school football and then dreaming about playing in college [for the Razorbacks]. I did all of that. I think it was right at the end of my college days that I began to think, 'What am I going to do next?' "
Dan Enos, his college position coach and offensive coordinator, had been telling him there was more than a realistic chance that he would be drafted and could play in the NFL. When Allen began setting school records in 2015, it hit home that his coach was onto something.
"We got on a pretty good roll at the end of 2015," Allen said. "It just kept getting better. I hadn't really watched NFL games. I didn't have a favorite team. I probably had some favorite NFL players, but not a team. I just knew I had to do something after college.
"I guess I just spent my life living in the moment. Then I kind of thought, 'Maybe this is going to happen.' "
Living in the moment is what an NFL backup does. That is especially true of the offseason. Often, it's a free-agent deal over the summer, which is what led Allen to San Francisco, where another former Fayetteville High School star, Dre Greenlaw, is a star linebacker.
"You just try to be ready when someone calls," Allen said. "For a lot of teams, they wait until they see what they get in the draft. They evaluate the roster.
"I work out, stay in shape and throw a couple of days a week. Just be ready.
"There are a certain number of guys out there like me. We know there is still a chance that we are going to play another year. I'll go on like this until it's obvious I can't do it anymore."
Allen is now busy raising a growing family with two of his best friends doing the same thing across the street.
"AJ and Calli Derby live here, too," Allen said. "It's really been great."
Brandon and his wife Sarah have a son, Oakland, who is almost 3, with another son on the way.
AJ Derby, former Arkansas tight end, met the former Calli Berna through Allen during their Razorback days. She was a basketball player for the Razorbacks who went to Fayetteville High School with Allen.
"Calli and I have been friends all of our lives," Allen said. "As far as how I met Sarah, we were neighbors in college. She is from Bentonville and we met in college. We all hung out in groups."
Brandon Allen keeps up with the Razorbacks in detail. He said he was excited when Enos returned for a second stint as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in January. He phoned his old coach with the scouting report.
"I told him he was going to love KJ Jefferson," Allen said. "I think they both like what's happening now. KJ is learning an NFL system. Coach Enos and I have always stayed in touch. I know he's excited to be back and I'm excited for Arkansas."
Enos detailed his relationship with all of the Allens -- Bobby, Brandon and younger brother Austin -- in an interview this spring.
"I recall the courtship when Bret Bielema was trying to get me to take the job in 2015," Enos said. "He told me we had a really good senior quarterback that was about ready to blossom. That was Brandon. And, he said, his brother is pretty good, too. And, by the way, his dad is on our staff, too.
"I said, 'What? Three of them?' You know what? It was terrific. Brandon and Austin were both really good, and Bobby was great to have around.
"It was kind of fun. Maybe Brandon or Austin would have a bad moment at practice or a game, Bobby would be on them almost as soon as they walked off the field with like, 'What were you thinking?' I didn't have to say a word. I could be the good cop."
Brandon Allen confirmed those thoughts.
"Dad was always first," he said. "It was honest thoughts. He let us know. He was a coach, after all. It wasn't bad, just honest coaching.
"I loved Coach Enos. I was a little bit surprised that he was coming back because you just don't think about something like that happening. But it made sense. I think he and Coach [Sam] Pittman had a good mesh. I think it's going to be great."
Enos returns with more than NFL systems. He's added the run-pass option to his playbook.
"We didn't run any of that," Allen said. "But I can honestly tell you that if you are in the NFL now, you run some RPO. We have with the Bengals. Joe Burrow is an RPO guy and it really does make the defense wrong no matter what they do."
The Arkansas offense under Enos in 2015-17 featured what Allen called "run tags. You might call a run play, but a pass play was attached. You checked at the line of scrimmage."
In the NFL, Allen has played in 15 games and started nine. He worked over the Houston Texans for 371 passing yards during a 37-31 victory in 2020.
It was played at NRG Stadium in Houston, the site of one of his favorite college games, a 31-7 bowl victory over Texas in the Texas Bowl to end the 2014 season.
"I'm not sure it was one of my best games, but just anytime you beat Texas, it's a great memory," Allen said. "You don't ever forget it if you are a Razorback."
There are tons of highlights from the 2015 season when the Enos offense, featuring tight ends Hunter Henry and Jeremy Sprinkle and running back Alex Collins, rolled to an 8-5 record. The crowning moment was probably the overtime comeback at Ole Miss.
The Hogs converted a fourth-and-25 with a crazy lateral play from Allen to Henry to Collins on the way to a 53-52 victory. Allen passed for his sixth touchdown and ran for a two-point conversion in overtime to dash Ole Miss' hopes for an SEC West crown.
"I can't forget it, especially on April 25," Allen said. "My Twitter feed fills up. You know, 4-25. That's a lot of fun every April 25.
"But there were other fun times my senior year. The 4-overtime victory over Auburn was pretty good, too. I really look back at my time in college and think there were about 100 great moments."
There could be some more NFL highlights to come, too.
"I hope so," he said. "I'm having a blast and really just don't know what could happen next. I'm just trying to stay prepared."
Allen said his father built him that way.
"I had knowledge of football from an early age because of Dad," he said. "That's growing up in the home of a coach. You were prepared. We talked football. He wanted you to understand it.
"I think most high school quarterbacks just go out there and run plays. But because of the discussions we had at home, Austin and I both knew defensive alignments and tendencies. Dad taught us to do that.
"I think as far as I was concerned, it was a must. I didn't think I had a great arm. I wasn't big or fast. To be successful, I knew it would come down to preparation. So I tried to make that a strength."