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The Buffalo Bills bounced back big time with a 24-18 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday Night Football.
While Bills quarterback Josh Allen completed 31-of-40 passes for 324 yards, three total touchdowns, and one interception against Tampa Bay, there was a brief moment in the second quarter that had everyone in Orchard Park holding their breath.
The 27-year-old injured his shoulder after getting tackled in the red zone by Buccaneers linebacker YaYa Diaby. Allen got up, shook his right arm out and didn’t miss a play. He finished the drive with a 13-yard rushing touchdown.
However, just before the Buccaneers hit a 56-yard field goal, Allen entered the blue medical tent, and backup quarterback Kyle Allen started warming up on the sidelines.
After a few minutes, Allen came out of the medical tent, got his throwing arm checked out by trainers, and returned to play. While Allen has downplayed his shoulder injury since he first tweaked it against the New York Giants in Week 6, he told reporters after the game that it was a “scary” moment for him.
Heading into the blue tent, “You never like to be in those situations, it’s always scary,” Allen said. “At the end of the day, it’s football. It’s not if, it’s when,” regarding getting injured. “Just trying to put all that side and be the guy I need to be for this team.
“Any time you’re feeling something in your throwing shoulder as a quarterback, alarms are going off in your head, ‘Oh crap.’ But it’s something we’ll have to monitor and continue going forward with and make sure we’re taking care of it.”
Josh Allen Said He Will Have ‘A Lot of Rehab’ Next Week
NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo asked Allen if he had any doubt that he’d be able to return play, and the Bills $258 million franchise star took a short pause before answering.
“It’s gonna take a lot for me not to play,” Allen said when asked about his shoulder. “I’m going to be a little sore for a couple of days. But we got a great training staff… they help me out. A lot of rehab in this nice mini-bye that we got. I’m glad it’s a Thursday night game. We’ll have some time to rest.
The Bills have 10 days before traveling to Paycor Stadium to face the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 9. As for his message to the team, “Reset. Come back ready to go. We got nine games left in the season and we’ll take in 1-0… Get away for a couple of days, refresh, and be back and ready to go.”
Josh Allen Noticeably Skipped Giving a High Five With His Right Hand
Allen may have needed a few more minutes to warm up after leaving the blue medical tent because he was intercepted on his very first pass. However, Allen proceeded to throw a 22-yard touchdown touchdown pass to tight end Dalton Kincaid, strongly indicating that everything was fine with his throwing arm.
But during the celebration over Kincaid’s first-ever touchdown in the NFL, Allen noticeably only gave a low five with his left arm.
After the game, Allen gushed over Kincaid’s breakout performance. With veteran tight end Dawson Knox on injured reserve, the Bills first-round pick from the 2023 NFL draft stepped up and finished on Thursday with five catches for 65 yards and a score, including a clutch 15-yard sideline catch in the third quarter that kept the Bills drive alive.
“He feels like he’s been in this league a long time. He’s a professional,” Allen said. “I thought he stepped up to the challenge and we’re going to have to get him more involved in the offense as the season goes by.”
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