Tag: josh allen vikings

Why has Josh Allen become a disaster in the red zone?

Josh Allen has become the NFL’s worst red zone quarterback when he was once the ultimate weapon there. How on earth did this happen?

In 2021, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen was about as deadly in the red zone — from the opposing 20-yard line and in — as any quarterback in the NFL. In those situations, including the playoffs, Allen completed 79 of 136 passes for 522 yards, 341 air yards, 35 touchdowns, 35 touchdowns, two interceptions, and a passer rating of 99.9. Only Matthew Stafford of the Los Angeles Rams had more red zone touchdowns with 40, and Stafford had two more games than Allen — a conference championship game and a Super Bowl — in which to make that happen.

The point is, you didn’t worry about Josh Allen in the red zone. Like, at all. Add in Allen’s 34 red zone rushing attempts for 153 yards and six touchdowns, and it could credibly be argued that there was no more terrifying weapon in the NFL when it came to scoring when scoring most needed to happen.

And this is why Allen’s red zone woes in 2022 are such a mystery. We certainly saw them in the Bills’ insane 33-30 overtime loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday. Allen matched his entire 2021 total with two red zone picks, both to future Hall of Fame cornerback Patrick Peterson.

There was… well, whatever this was with 10:42 left in regulation…

…and the game-ending interception with 1:19 left in overtime.

Allen’s postgame reaction was certainly understandable.

Overall in the red zone this season, Allen has been the NFL’s most generous quarterback. Not a great trend.

Let’s start with that Wallace pick against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 5. It was just outside the red zone, but it works for our purposes, because it displays a worrisome trend. Allen tried to hit Gabe Davis in the right corner of the end zone, seemingly oblivious to the fact that Wallace, Allen’s former teammate, had position on Davis. This was simply an ill-advised throw.

Let’s now move to the interception Allen threw to Jaire Alexander of the Green Bay Packers in Week 8 from the Green Bay three-yard line. This turned into a scramble drill, and while Davis is open at a certain point in the progression, he throws it late, when Alexander is in prime position to take the ball away.

Now. the pick Allen threw in Week 9 against the New York Jets. This was a counter boot, and Allen’s job was simply to cut the field in half and find the open guy. This was second-and-10 from the New York 13-yard line with 43 seconds elapsed in the game, so it wasn’t as if Allen was in desperation mode. It just looked that way as Allen ran out of rope and threw a weird half=pass in the general direction of tight end Dawson Knox. Safety Jordan Whitehead was happy for the gift.

After Sunday’s game, Allen quickly broke down the two red zone picks he threw against the Vikings.

“The first one — it’s fourth down. No sense in taking a sack or throwing the ball away, giving somebody a chance. Those are gonna happen. The second one… just a bad ball. Bad decision.”

There have been too many bad balls and bad decisions of late for Allen, and they don’t seem tied to any sort of injury issue. This seems more about Allen believing in his own ability to make impossible hero throws in a part of the field where space is compressed, and any fraction of a mistake can explode into Really Bad Things.

The Bills, seen by many (inclosing yours truly) as a lead-pipe Super Bowl contender, are now 6-3, looking up at the Miami Dolphins and the New York Jets in the AFC East, with the New England Patriots right on their heels. Allen has relatively easy get-well defenses coming up in the Lions and Browns, before he has to deal with the Patriots, who may have the NFL’s best pass defense right now.

Allen has a long way to go, and a short time to once again become the quarterback we have all expected him to be. As long as the red zone disasters continue, the Bills will be in trouble on their way to the top.

Josh Allen got his overtime chance this time… and he blew it

Josh Allen had an opportunity to save the Bills from a shocking overtime loss to the Vikings. After creating the need for it, he failed.

At the end of the Buffalo Bills’ divisional round loss against the Kansas City Chiefs last season, there was a great hue and cry that the Bills didn’t get a chance to match the Chiefs’ overtime touchdown. There was a rule change in the offseason, allowing the team that gives up a touchdown in overtime to try and match that score.

On Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings, the Bills and quarterback Josh Allen got a chance to win a game late in overtime, and not only did Allen create the need for overtime in the first place, he let the Vikings off the hook near the end of that overtime period.

In one of the craziest games you’ll ever see, the Vikings overcame a 27-10 third-quarter deficit, at which their Win Probability was 2%. When Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins was stuffed at the Buffalo one-yard line on fourth-and-goal with 50 seconds left in regulation, the Vikings had a Win Probability of 1%.

Then, Allen fumbled the ball at his own one-yard line on the next play, and the Vikings got the touchdown on defense they so desperately needed on offense.

Eric Kendricks’ fumble recovery in the end zone made the score 30-27 in Minnesota’s favor, but Allen drive his team downfield with precious seconds left, and got the Bills in range for Tyler Bass’ game-tying 29-yard field goal with two seconds left.

The Vikings took the ball first in overtime, and went on a long drive that ended in a 33-yard Greg Joseph field goal with 3:45 left in the fifth quarter. Allen once again got his team in line for at least a field goal with both his arm and his legs… and then, he attempted a pass in the end zone to receiver Gabe Davis.

That’s when 12-year veteran cornerback Patrick Peterson swooped in to end the thing.

“Losing sucks,” Allen said after the game. “It sucks even worse this way. Horrendous second half. I have to be better.”

Allen finished the game with 29 completions on 34 attempts for 330 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. He also led the Bills with 84 rushing yards on just six carries, and his rushing was key to Buffalo even being in place to do anything in overtime.

But as a quarterback, you are defined by your work in big moments, and there’s no other way to put this. As talented as Josh Allen is, and as much as he’s done already in his formidable NFL career, he’s going to have to wear the goat horns on this one.