All Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills had to do in the Buffalo Bills’ season opener on Monday Night Football was to stay within himself. Aaron Rodgers of the New York Jets suffered what is believed to be a torn Achilles tendon on his fourth play of the game with his new team, leaving the Jets in the hands of backup Zach Wilson. The second overall pick in the 2021 draft didn’t really impress, completing 14 of 21 passes for 140 yards, one touchdown, one interception, and a passer rating of 81.4. The touchdown pass was primarily due to the efforts of receiver Garrett Wilson, the reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year, who made an unbelievable play batting the ball away from Bills cornerback Tre’Davious White before taking it in himself.
.@GarrettWilson_V IS. NOT. HUMAN.
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— New York Jets (@nyjets) September 12, 2023
So, again, all Josh Allen had to do in this game was what he promised all offseason — to take a profit more often, and to avoid being Superman when it wasn’t needed. Instead, Allen threw three interceptions, one in each of the last three quarters of regulation, and all to safety Jordan Whitehead, who actually made an extra $250,000 in this game based on his three-interception incentive for the entire season.
“Trying to force the ball,” Allen said after the game. “Same s***, same place, different day.
“I hurt our team tonight. I cost our team tonight. It feels eerily similar to last year, and I hate that it’s something I do.”
It feels eerily similar to the last five full seasons for Allen, who also had a lost fumble in the 22-16 overtime defeat. His 84 turnovers since entering the NFL in 2018 is the most of any player in that span, and he had six interceptions in the Bills’ last four games of the 2022 season, including two in a close wild-card win over the Miami Dolphins, and a no-touchdown, one-interception loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in the divisional round in which Allen was hurling the ball all over the place. In the 2022 postseason, Allen completed just seven of 21 passes of 20 or more air yards for 216 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions, and a passer rating of 49.0.
The Bills made several additions this offseason to give Allen more support, including Utah tight end Dalton Kincaid in the first round and Florida offenivse guard O’Cyrus Torrence in the second round of the draft, and running backs Damien Harris and Latavius Murray in free agency.
But none of that mattered, because in a moment where he was teed up to try his new, more careful and efficient playing style, Allen reverted to his old YOLO tactics to his team’s worst possible result.
“Our guys played so hard. Defense gave us opportunities,” Allen concluded. “They played a heck of a game, and it sucks when you feel like you’re the reason, and I am the reason why we lost tonight.”
Each of Allen’s interceptions told a different story, so let’s get into them.