Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen insisted this week that his injured shoulder felt fine and he was ready to go against the Cincinnati Bengals, but his initial absence from pregame warmups sparked some concern that it may be worse than he was letting on.
Allen did not initially take the field with his teammates before the November 5 game. As reporter Jon Scott noted on X, backup Kyle Allen was seen warming up with wide receivers in his place.
Close to 30 minutes later, Scott shared that Allen did take the field with his teammates, but the news that he was limited led some fans to speculate that Allen could be feeling the lingering effects of the injury initially suffered two weeks ago.
Josh Allen ‘Managing’ Shoulder Injury
Scott speculated that Allen could once again be suffering from a lingering injury, as he had last season when he hurt his elbow in November and was limited for the remainder of the season.
“Josh Allen still not out here for pregame warmups. Kyle Allen throwing to WRs,” Scott wrote. “JA17 didn’t do his usual pregame throwing once last year after suffering injury. Mentioned earlier this week trainers have plan to manage throwing shoulder.”
There was no indication that Allen would miss any time in the game against the Bengals, despite the late arrival in warmups.
Josh Allen thumbs up.
QB1 is ready for Sunday Night.
After suffering an elbow injury last season, Allen was limited but did not miss any games. The week after suffering the injury in a loss to the New York Jets, Allen did not take the field for warmups against the Minnesota Vikings.
“Josh Allen is active but he was not spotted on the field during pre-game warmups,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter wrote at the time.
BREAKING: #Bills star QB Josh Allen is still not out on the field in Cincy for pregame warmups, per @JonScottTV.
Backup QB Kyle Allen has been throwing to the receivers.
Allen is likely just getting extra treatment for his injury before getting out there, but it’s something to…
Josh Allen Downplayed Injury Earlier in the Week
Though he missed practice on Wednesday, Allen told reporters on Thursday that he felt fine and would have been able to play had the game been that day. He added that the decision to keep him out of practice was made out of caution, which could also explain why he was initially held out of warmups before Sunday’s game.
“Every day it gets so much better, and again, if I had to practice today, absolutely would have. If the game was today, I’m playing the game,” Allen said. “But just in terms of making sure that it’s not going to be super sore and wanting to be smart when we’re throwing it and that’s up to our training staff.”
Allen added that there were no long-term concerns either, saying it was not a repeat of last season’s lingering issue with his elbow.
“I don’t think it’s going to linger too much,” Allen said. “But I think this was the best thing for me in making sure that, just trying to stay ahead of it and not let this affect me long term.”
The Bills face a key game against the Bengals, with the chance to move into a tie atop the AFC East with a win. Heavy projections powered by Quarter4 gave the Bills as a 53% win probability.
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Bills QB Josh Allen’s Unexplained Pregame Absence Raises Eyebrows