Buffalo Bills superstar quarterback Josh Allen and legendary former New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady had a candid conversation this week about Allen potentially taking fewer risks and running the football less moving forward.
Brady had Allen on as a guest on his Let's Go! podcast, and the seven-time Super Bowl champion and future Pro Football Hall of Famer expressed his hope that Allen will preserve his body so he can enjoy a lengthy career (beginning at the 6:45 mark):
"Because he makes a lot of plays running ball, I think sometimes he gets used to and he wants to run it because he knows he can gain yards. There's a lot of confidence in it. But the only problem is, from my standpoint, you're putting yourself in harm's way. And when you put yourself in harm's way, it doesn't take much for someone to land on you to set you back."
Brady expanded on his thought, noting that while he doesn't want Allen to stop running completely, he wants him to be smart and safe when doing so:
"I would love to see Josh save those for very special moments and special occasions to run the ball rather than to run the ball six minutes into the game on a second-and-6. Not that he shouldn't run, but when he does run, f--king slide and make sure no one hits you because I don't ever want to see him get hurt and I want to see him out there playing out there because he's such a f--king stud. ... I want to see him play another 10 to 12 years and really see how he can maximize his potential."
Allen suggested that while he understands and largely agrees with Brady's point, he also finds it hard to stop himself from putting his body on the line in the name of winning football games:
"He is right, I'm not saying that he's wrong, but you can get hurt in the pocket just as much as you can outside the pocket. That's the only caveat that I have for that. ... You gotta go win a football game and sometimes that calls upon me doing something like putting my body on the line for my teammates because of how much I do love my teammates and how much I see them working their tails off too. ... That's where the flip for me is so hard to turn off because I just care so much about winning football games and sometimes it does cause the risk to be a little bit higher than maybe even the reward."
Brady went on to joke that Allen reminds him of his youngest son, Jack, in that he likes to do things his own way.
Since Buffalo selected Allen with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2018 NFL draft out of Wyoming, he has developed into one of the most electric and productive quarterbacks in the NFL.
In his first five seasons, Allen led the Bills to four playoff appearances and three AFC East titles, and his ability to run the ball has been a big part of his success.
Over the first five seasons of his career, Allen averaged over 617 rushing yards and nearly eight rushing yards per season, making him one of the most prolific running quarterbacks in NFL history already.
Of course, Allen also has a huge arm and has done a ton of damage as a passer over the years as well, throwing for 20,562 yards, 155 touchdowns and 68 interceptions in 85 career games.
In eight games this season, Allen has become more efficient than ever, leading the NFL with a career-best completion percentage of 71.7 percent.
He has also cut down on his running, as he is on pace for 77 carries for 402 yards, both of which would be career lows. However, he is on pace for a career high in rushing touchdowns, as he already has five.
Allen has not missed any games in the past five seasons, and he pointed out to Brady that the only time he missed time was in his rookie season after suffering a UCL injury when he got hit while throwing.
Given that it is a huge weapon and he has never gotten significantly hurt doing it, Allen isn't likely to take running out of his arsenal, but he is already getting more selective with his runs in his sixth NFL season.
Read 0 Comments
Download the app for comments Get the B/R app to join the conversation