Amidst the Buffalo Bills’ ongoing disappointment, Josh Allen’s role in their falling short has come into question.
The perennial Pro Bowler, while uncommonly gifted, currently leads the NFL in interceptions with 11. None of this is new, of course — Allen has finished near the top in picks in almost every season of his career dating back to 2018. It’s just that Allen’s turnover issues are magnified more when the Bills are an uninspiring 5-5 and merely treading water, looking for any answers.
New offensive coordinator Joe Brady (who took over for the since-scapegoated Ken Dorsey) doesn’t see Allen’s penchant for risk-taking as an issue. If anything, he seems quite eager to unleash the skill set of a player who has shown time and again that they can play like an MVP-caliber quarterback at their very best. And Brady is absolutely correct.
Asking Allen to tone it down when the Bills need him to make game-breaking plays out of structure would just be silly:
Joe Brady was asked if he's worried about Josh Allen's 'swagger' and confidence.
"Not at all. Give me Josh Allen all day every day."#BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/PnOPsVfUfW
— Dan Fetes (@danfetes) November 16, 2023
We’re live with Joe Brady as he takes questions from the media.#GoBills | #BillsMafia https://t.co/4kPxVzmVC1
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 16, 2023
I know Brady’s endorsement of Allen can read like a boilerplate statement, but it shouldn’t. Outside of perhaps the Kansas City Chiefs, almost every other NFL team would take Allen’s incredible highs at quarterback any day of the week. That shouldn’t remotely be a question for a player on pace to enjoy his fourth consecutive season of at least 40 created touchdowns. Talking up Allen’s ability like this as fervor grows about his turnover problems is the right move. Brady should stand by his superstar quarterback, especially if the Bills want to turn it around.
Don’t believe me? Let my For The Win colleague Meghan L. Hall explain this Buffalo “conundrum” even better:
“But here’s the thing: If you want Josh Allen to be good, you must accept the interceptions with the wizardry.
The Bills know that.
The Bills also know that volume creates more glitter and gold. The team appears perfectly happy for Allen to average over 4400 passing yards since 2020 if that means Buffalo will regularly be in playoff contention.”
Good job, Joe Brady. Josh Allen should be free to be himself because that’s when the Bills are at their best.