Getty Josh Allen runs the ball in a game against the Miami Dolphins.
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen has long put to rest the concerns that pervaded during his rookie season, when his struggles with accuracy and turnover issues raised questions about whether he could be a long-term starter in the NFL.
But even after two Pro Bowl season and a second-team All-Pro nod, not everyone is convinced that Allen has what it takes to put the Bills over the hump. One NFL coach aired a concern about the Bills quarterback, telling The Athletic that he is among the second-tier of NFL signal-callers and may not be able to fully take over a game like Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
Anonymous Coach’s Concern With Josh Allen
The coach participated in The Athletic’s survey of 50 coaches and executives, who collectively ranked all of the league’s quarterbacks into tiers.
While Allen ultimately ranked in the first tier — behind only Mahomes and Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and one slot ahead of New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers — some ranked him lower. One coach shared a concern about Allen’s ability to throw out of the pocket, which can become an issue if the Bills get a big deficit and need to abandon the run game to come back.
“I’m not sure he (Allen) can win you a game as a dropback passer consistently, which is part of the Tier 1 description,” the coach said. “I think Allen, Lamar (Jackson) and Jalen (Hurts) all fit into that high Tier 2 category. The running is a weapon, but if you are down two scores or 10 points, you might have an issue.”
Josh Allen’s Changing Game
While Allen has always been effective at attacking defenses with both his arm and legs, the team’s brass has hinted that he will be staying more in the pocket in the future to avoid taking hits in the open field. Both head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane said this season that Allen needs to do a better job of avoiding hits, which likely means fewer runs.
“The only thing I’d get on to him is he’s got too many bruises on him,” Beane said in his season-ending press conference, 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.”
Josh Allen takes a big hit on Day 5 in pads at #Bills camp. Other observations:
🔵 Tre White 🔥
🔵 Stef Diggs 🗣️
🔵 O-line shake up
🔵 UDFA 📈
🔵 Depth TE battle 🥵
🔵 Kincaid still trending UP
Allen ran a career-high 124 times last season, and since coming into the league in 2018 has rushed for 3,087 total yards with 38 rushing touchdowns.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter warned this week that Allen needs to adjust his play style if he wants to avoid injury over the long term.
“I think as you get older, you get wiser about some of the tackles you decide to take on or not take on, but the fact of that matter is that’s who Josh Allen is,” Schefter said in an August 4 appearance on Get Up. “He runs over people, he runs around people. He’s not going to give up the use of his legs, but obviously he can be smarter about some of the decisions he makes some of the times.”