Getty Bills quarterback Josh Allen at Highmark Stadium on January 15, 2024.
Back in November, at 6-6, it appeared that the Buffalo Bills would miss the playoffs entirely. However, Bills quarterback Josh Allen and Co. bounced back big time.
Buffalo went on a five-game win streak to clinch the AFC East for the fourth consecutive year and nab the No. 2 seed. After defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-17 in the Wild Card round, the Bills will look to win their seventh straight game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
The shift in the Bills’ offense after firing Ken Dorsey was huge. Under interim offensive coordinator Joe Brady, the team found their spark. In particular with Allen, the Bills’ franchise star looked like he was having fun again. Evading several defenders to score a 52-yard rushing touchdown against the Steelers was the epitome of the “Josh Allen experience.”
JOSH ALLEN 52-YARD TD RUN 🤯😱
(via @NFL)
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, January 18, Brady admitted he wanted Allen to slide. Putting the team’s $258 million star in position to get seriously injured is something he would like to avoid. However, Allen clearly thrives as a dual threat and comes alive in risky situations.
“That’s who he is,” Brady said. “He’s a human eraser. He makes bad plays and bad play calls, he makes them work… All the time I’m telling him, ‘Hey look, man. There’s three guys around you. It’s the NFL. Just go down, you’re not going to able to do it.’ Well, he proved me wrong.”
“So that’s going to set me back a bit. He’s such a dynamic football player that I think when you hold Josh Allen back, you’re probably doing him a disservice.”
Josh Allen’s Rushing Numbers Under Joe Brady Have Soared
GettyBills Interim offensive coordinator Joe Brady at Highmark Stadium on November 19, 2023.
While it’s unlikely Brady was intentionally throwing any shade toward Dorsey, Allen’s stats in tandem with the Bills’ win streak don’t lie. The Buffalo News’ Mark Gaughan reported, “In the first 10 games under Dorsey, Allen rushed 43 times for 243 yards, an average of 4.3 attempts and 24.3 yards per game. (That’s not counting kneel-downs and aborted plays that counted as Allen runs.) He also had eight rushing TDs.
“In the eight games under Brady, Allen has rushed 62 times for 351 yards, an average of 7.75 attempts and 43.8 yards per game. He also had nine rushing TDs. His running is up 45%, no matter how you slice it.”
Allen told reporters on January 17 that running the ball more wasn’t exactly a conscious effort. “No, I don’t think so,” Allen said. “I’m just trying to take what the defense gives me. Sometimes it presents itself where we may not have the best man answer within our concept, thinking maybe they’re dropping out playing zone. They play man. Sometimes when you play man, no one really accounts for the quarterback.”
Allowing the 6-foot-5, 237-pound quarterback to rush the ball “puts a lot of stress on defenses,” Brady said last month. “And when they have to defend that and know that he’s such a freak when he is running with the football, that it makes it real tough on them and I’m all for it.”
The Chiefs are Fully Aware of Bills QB Josh Allen’s ‘Dynamic’
GettyBills quarterback Josh Allen is pursued by Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones at Arrowhead Stadium on December 10, 2023.
Allen and Co. will face one of the top defenses in the league when they host the Chiefs in the AFC Divisional round. During the Bills’ 20-17 win over Kansas City in Week 14, Allen recorded eight carries for 34 yards and a touchdown. He understands it will be tougher to rush against the Chiefs’ defense.
“Going back to a few weeks ago, in some of their third-down packages, they had a spy,” Allen said of the Chiefs. “So sometimes it’s not as easy to do that and you’re going to have to rely on other guys to win and make some plays. I’ve got a lot of confidence in our guys to do that.”
Kansas City’s defense knows what they’re up against. “There’s no secrets,” Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones told reporters on Wednesday. “We’re very familiar with the Bills and how dynamic their quarterback is, such a competitor.
“Their game has improved throughout the rest of the season and into the playoffs. I think they are hitting their peaks and making strides with their team with where they’re at right now. Tough team.”