Getty Bills quarterback Josh Allen at SoFi Stadium on December 23, 2023.
The Buffalo Bills will see Josh Allen and other starters taking the field at the team’s preseason opener on August 10.
Bills head coach Sean McDermott announced on August 8 that Allen, who has played sparingly in the preseason in past years, will be playing close to a quarter in the team’s first preseason game against the Chicago Bears.
McDermott said it was important for the starters to get up to speed ahead of the start of the season, and that meant getting Allen onto the field.
“It’s really, to me, it’s getting them ramped up and ready to go for the season,” McDermott said, via ESPN’s Alaina Getzenberg. “It’s an important step, hard to simulate the speed of the game and so getting that in preseason is important, going through warmups and the energy that comes with playing a game in front of fans, and being able to manage that. So, there’s a lot of reasons for it, like I said, it’s just another step.”
Coach McDermott: @JoshAllenQB will play in Saturday’s preseason game against the Bears. #CHIvsBUF
No Set Plan for Josh Allen’s Playing Time
McDermott said there is no specific plan for how much time Allen will play over the course of the team’s three preseason games this year. The Bills coach hinted that Allen could use the time to gain chemistry with a new set of wide receivers brought on this offseason.
“We’ll just take it one week at a time,” McDermott said. “So, you know, there’s a number of new faces on our offense also, including his receiving corps and so some of that is baked into this. But the biggest thing is individually we’ve got to get ourselves ready to go and go from there.”
The Bills have several new faces on offense, with top receivers Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis departing this offseason and the team adding several veterans including Curtis Samuel, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Chase Claypool. The preseason will also be the first live-game action for wide receiver Keon Coleman, the team’s top draft pick.
Josh Allen Ready for Anything
Before McDermott publicly announced the decision that Allen would see playing time in the first game, the Bills quarterback appeared open to whatever the team decided. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Allen said he understood the benefits either way.
“I don’t feel it makes a difference for me at this point in my career,” Allen said, via ESPN. “To get things rolling would be nice but I understand not getting out there and making sure that we’re being healthy and being protective. Again, it’s a double-edged sword any way you look at it. If I’m asked to play, I’ll play. If I’m told not to play, I won’t play. So, the competitive juices in me want to play, but I understand Week 1 — we still got some time.”
Allen did not play in the team’s first preseason game last year but did appear in the second game, completing 7-of-10 passes for 64 yards in a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. He appeared again in the postseason finale, completing 5-of-7 passes for 49 yards in a win over the Bears.
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Bills HC Sean McDermott Announces Big Decision on Josh Allen’s Status