Josh Allen’s third year off to a charmed start for unbeaten Bills
Bills quarterback Josh Allen is leading the NFL in passing yards through two weeks.
Tuck it in and run. That had kind of been the M.O. more times than not the previous two seasons for Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen. In his first year with the club, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft from Wyoming was thrust into the starting lineup perhaps a bit too soon and played behind a less-than-stellar offensive front.
He wound up leading Sean McDermott’s club with 631 yards on the ground to go along with eight rushing touchdown. Allen barely completed 50 percent of his passes, good for 10 scores but with 12 interceptions and a pair of lost fumbles.
The following year, an upgraded offensive line was a catalyst to the team finishing 10-6 and reaching the playoffs for the second time in three years. Allen did not lead the team in rushing yards as was the case during his debut campaign but he still found the end zone a team-high nine times. He elevated his completion percentage to 58.8, doubled his number of touchdown passes (20) but still turned over the ball 13 times, which included losing four of a disturbing 14 fumbles.
Josh Allen has turned a corner with the Bills through two games in 2020.
Two games into this current season and there’s been quite the transformation. The strong-armed talent had yet to throw for at least 300 yards in a game in his first two years. That changed in Week 1 in a 27-27 win over the Jets in which Allen connected on 33-of-46 throws for 312 yards and two scores. He also ran for 57 yards and a touchdown but there were also two more fumbles, both resulting in turnovers.
But seven days later at South Florida, Allen set a new career-high with 417 yards through the air. He threw four TD passes, zero interceptions and did not fumble in a 31-28 triumph over the Dolphins (via Adam Unger of WKBW Buffalo).
Two weeks into 2020 and Allen has thrown for a league-high 729 yards. He’s hit on 70.4 percent of his passes for a half-dozen scores without an interception. A year ago, the Bills failed to score at least 20 points in their final four regular-season contests and the wild card loss at Houston.
Putting points on the board has not been the problem to date. And the addition of wide receiver Stefon Diggs via trade from Minnesota, now teamed with underrated John Brown and with Cole Beasley in the fold as well, gives Allen quite an array of targets. This is suddenly a very scary offensive team with a passing attack (via Sal Maiorana off the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle) capable of big plays downfield.
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This offseason, the Buffalo Bills not only added Diggs but reinforced one of the league’s better defensive units with plenty of veteran support. The running attack is solid. And now Josh Allen appears to be coming into his own as a passer. There is the potential for a big year for a franchise that hasn’t won a division title or a playoff game since 1995. The development of McDermott’s team will be fascinating to watch.