Getty Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen talking to the New York Jets defense in the middle of a game.
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen has been a one-man show at times — leading one of the league’s top passing attacks while also serving as the team’s most effective rusher, and even occasionally catching touchdown passes.
For Bills general manager Brandon Beane, it may be a little too much.
Beane opened up on Allen’s season, sharing what he said was his “only” criticism of the All-Pro quarterback. The Bills have placed a high priority on keeping Allen safe and healthy, and Beane said he sometimes strays a bit too far into the danger zone and puts himself at risk.
Bills General Manager Wants Josh Allen to Manage Risks
After a year in which Allen ran the ball a career-high 124 times, Beane said he would like to see the quarterback taking fewer risks and fewer hits in the coming season. He said Allen suffered too much wear and tear during the season and will get him to limit that in the coming year.
“The only thing I’d get on to him is he’s got too many bruises on him,” Beane said, via the Democrat & Chronicle. “And we’ve got to work on taking less hits. That’s the only reason I’m going to ever criticize Josh is just take less hits.”
Allen has been one of the league’s most effective rushing quarterbacks since he entered the league in 2018, rushing for 3,087 yards with 38 rushing touchdowns over his five seasons.
But some insiders believe the team is growing frustrated with Allen’s tendency to invite contact with defenders.
“The amount of punishment Allen absorbs is not a new topic. It’s something the team has addressed with him before,” wrote Jay Skurski of the Buffalo News. “It struck me, though, that it almost sounded as if there were a bit of frustration underneath the surface when Beane spoke. Again, that was just my read. If accurate, that would be understandable. You can only tell a player so many times to slide or get out of bounds before frustration sets in if he’s taking too many unnecessary hits.”
Allen Taking Time Off to Heal
Though Allen was selected as an alternate for the Pro Bowl, the Bills quarterback opted out to instead heal the injuries that accumulated over the course of the season. After injuring his elbow in a November 6 loss to the New York Jets, Allen remained on the injury report for the remainder of the season even though he didn’t miss any time.
Allen revisited the injury in December, saying in an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show that he was doing what he could during the week to mitigate the pain and playing through it on game days.
“I’m gonna have to deal with the elbow for the foreseeable future but on game day it doesn’t even bother me” ~@JoshAllenQB
Like his injury against the Jets, many of Allen’s bumps and bruises came while he was throwing from the pocket, not running the ball. Allen was sacked 33 times during the regular season and another eight times in two playoff games. So while the Bills may try to add more weapons for Allen and work on limiting his rushing attempts, upgrading the offensive line could be another offseason priority.