ORCHARD PARK - Sam Darnold and Josh Allen weren’t just glancing into the bright lights of AT&T Stadium, site of the NFL Draft, last April.

The two quarterbacks selected by the New York Jets No. 3 and the Buffalo Bills No. 7 overall, respectively, were glancing into the future.

Two standout collegians headed for the AFC East Division and twice annual meetings.

Forever bonded by inclusion in the heralded Quarterback Class of 2018 that included Baker Mayfield going No. 1 to Cleveland, Josh Rosen 10th to Arizona and Lamar Jackson 32nd to Baltimore.

“You could say that, yeah, especially after draft night,’’ said Allen when asked if he and Darnold talked about what fate had in store for them.

“We met up and got to hang out after everything kind of settled down. Obviously, being in the same division, you’re going to see each other twice a year. We’re excited for it and we hope this is a matchup for a long time, at least I do. As long as I can play football, this is where I want to be.’’

Game 1 of Allen vs. Darnold is set for 1 p.m. Sunday at New Era Field. What the Bills and Jets hope is the start of a beautiful rivalry.

Would it be too much to ask for this to blossom into Jim Kelly vs. Dan Marino? For now, we’d take Joe Ferguson vs. Richard Todd.

Baby steps.

But at least Sunday will give people what they want.

More:For Bills and Jets, it's all about the quarterbacks as December starts

More:Bills' 'pro's pros' deserve props as they continue to sack Father Time

More:Heisman Trophy: Bills' Brian Daboll is pulling for Tua Tagovailoa

Due to Allen (elbow) and Darnold (foot) nursing injuries, the Nov. 11 game between the Bills and Jets featured Matt Barkley against Josh McCown, a matchup so off Broadway, Iowa Community Theater rejected it.

To the delight of Bills Mafia, free agent Barkley put on a spectacular show, leading the Bills to a 41-10 victory. But this was always Allen’s team, and the Jets were always Darnold’s.

While football is the ultimate team game, quarterbacks, fair or not, get assigned records, just as baseball pitchers do.

And while it might be unfair to have Darnold face Buffalo’s No. 2-ranked defense and Allen face New York’s 22nd-ranked unit, an evaluation more premature than 6-month old scotch is about to be made by fans and media and their itchy Twitter fingers:

Which team got the better quarterback?

“Well, I don’t think one game is going to determine who got the right guy and who got the wrong guy,’’ said Bills general manager Brandon Beane, who like his Jets counterpart, Mike Maccagnan, was willing to wheel and deal to land his man. “Sam’s a great kid. He did a great job with us (interviewing) and I think he’s going to be a success, too. But those two won’t be on the field at the same time, so my focus is on Josh and his development and then on our defense and how they play against another talented rookie quarterback.’’

Fair enough.

So far, Darnold and Allen have given their teams the kind of play you’d expect from two guys learning how to horseback ride.

At times, the horse is going to gallop and other times it won’t budge. But heck, even Aaron Rodgers didn’t look like Roy Rogers right away.

Darnold, the only rookie QB to start Week 1, played nine games (3-6-0 record) before his injury, completing 55 percent of his throws for 1,934 yards, 11 touchdowns and 14 interceptions.

He has had three multi-TD games and four multi-interception games, including a four-pick nightmare in his last outing on Nov. 4, a frustrating 13-6 loss to Miami. He’s been sacked 21 times and has a 31.4 QBR.

Allen, who started Week 2, has started seven games (3-4-0), missing four due to his injury. He has completed 52.9 percent of his throws, good for 1,223 yards, 5 TDs and 7 interceptions. He’s had one multi-TD game, last week against the Dolphins, and three multi-pick performances. He’s been sacked 23 times and has a 50.4 QBR.

The one big difference in their games so far?

Allen has been an even-better-than-expected runner, gaining 389 yards and scoring 4 TDs on 57 carries. Lately, he’s been John Elwayesque, rushing for 99 yards against Jacksonville and a Bills’ franchise record 135 against Miami. That’s an eye opener considering Buffalo has employed Doug Flutie and Tyrod Taylor.

For the Bills and Jets, 2018 was always about their prized rookie quarterbacks, and it’s especially true this month as both losing teams slide into the off-season on Santa’s sleigh.

“I’m not really going against Sam, I’m going against the Jets defense,’’ said Allen, who, like the good scrambler he is, deftly dodged the mano-a-mano storyline. “It’s a really good defense. They play a lot better than their record shows. Whatever happened last game (Bills vs. Jets) happened … but this is a completely different ballgame. We’re trying to prepare as well as we can and we’re going in there ready for a really good game.’’

The Jets have scored one or no touchdowns during their six-game losing streak so seeing Darnold healthy again is more pleasing than a hungry man seeing a “We’re Open’’ sign on a diner.

Todd Bowles, who has Realtors calling the house, said Darnold was “developing well’’ in all phases before his injury. His four interceptions against the Dolphins shouldn’t be judged too harshly, he said.

As for Allen, Bowles is flat-out impressed.

“He’s showing all three phases: Great throwing from the pocket, great throwing on the run and then running the football itself. He’s got a triple-threat thing going on right now,’’ he said.

The Browns’ Mayfield and Cardinals’ Rosen have each started nine games, posting 3-6 records.

Jackson started the last three games for the Ravens in place of an injured Joe Flacco (hip) and despite some gray hair-inducing moments, has guided wins over Cincinnati, Oakland and Atlanta to keep Baltimore (7-5) smack in playoff contention.

Collectively, the Class of 2018 has a combined 15-22 record with 46 TDs and 45 interceptions. Enough good to get excited about. Enough bad to order a case of Just for Men.

“Year 2 for all of these guys will be easier than Year 1,’’ Beane said. “In all of these guys you can see the talent and why they were drafted where they were and then you also see some rough halves, or rough games. There’s no replacement for playing, so as tough as it’s been on all of them, going into next year the picture will slow down for them and they’ll have better success.’’

Before the draft, the Jets pulled a bold move to get Darnold, sending three second-round picks to the Colts to move from No. 6 to No. 3. Not to be outdone, the Bills sent two second-round picks to Tampa Bay to leap from No. 12 to No. 7.

In both cases, no guts, no glory. Two QB-needy franchises not afraid to swing for a home run instead of laying down a bunt.

“People will say we gave up a lot for Josh,’’ Beane said. “But if you get the guy who is your guy and you think he’s the guy, well it’s a quarterback league. Make the move. You’d rather make that move and get the guy you want than sit on your hands and let someone else take him.’’

And as people ask, “Who got the better quarterback, the Jets or Bills?’’ nobody will be sitting on their Twitter fingers, either. #Classof2018QBs, #DarnoldvsAllen, #hopeforfuture, #helpusfootballgods.