What has happened to Josh Allen from last year to this year?
Josh Allen is off to a phenomenal start. He’s no doubt the favorite for MVP in the AFC right now. Over in the NFC, Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson may give him some trouble. Nevertheless, his game has increased significantly. For the first time in his NFL career, Allen and his new found swagger has the Josh Allen doubters absolutely stunned. He went into the season having never thrown for 300 yards in a single game. So far this season, he has thrown for over 300 yards in three different games, including 415 yards (NFL.com) against Miami in week 2. In one of the two games that he didn’t reach 300 passing yards, he recorded 288 passing yards (NFL.com) which prior to this season, would have topped his career high in passing yards. It’s important to point out that it was against a Las Vegas Raiders team who just beat the Kansas City Chiefs. If I had to nitpick, he sometimes gets a bit wild in the pocket when pressured. He tries to do too much and waves the ball around with one hand. He is tremendously versatile, I just wish he would secure the ball. Other than that, what else can we possibly ask for from our 24 year old starting quarterback? I’m excited, to say the least. So what's the difference this season? Well for starters he has experience. Despite the collapse last season that took place against Texans in the wild card round of the playoffs, he did lead the Bills to a ten win season in only his second year in the league. So with that being said, he entered this season, I’m sure, with more confidence than the previous two. Another reason, which may be the biggest, is Stefon Diggs. He’s off to a great start. Through five weeks he has recorded over 100 yards in three different games. (NFL.com) Even in Tuesday’s loss, he had over a 100 yards. Him and Josh Allen really seem to be connecting on and off the field. Diggs was the much needed weapon we were after. I wouldn’t be surprised if his name gets thrown into the MVP mix soon. Even though he really hasn’t done much, I also really like Gabriel Davis. At 6’ 2”, he adds some size to our wide receiver crew. So, the big question pertaining to Allen and the offense is, what is the impact Tuesday’s loss left on Allen and his remarkable start to the season? Nothing significant, in my opinion. He had some bad throws for sure. The second interception was bad. It was the first interception of the season that was all on him. The first pick was thrown a tad behind Andre Roberts, but he still could have easily caught it. They still moved the ball well despite getting blown out. They were fantastic on third down, as they have been all season, Allen connected with Beasley several times in the second half, and as I mentioned above, Allen and Diggs connected multiple times. The biggest conversation right now needs to be our defense. I’ll save that for my next post. Twitter - @Rob_Hils_JR -Rob Hils
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