Bills teammates expand on how Josh Allen grew as leader following offseason departures

Throughout the 2024 campaign, numerous Buffalo Bills players and head coach Sean McDermott detailed how quarterback Josh Allen grew as a leader after the club lost multiple noteworthy veterans on both sides of the ball during the offseason. 

With Buffalo a win at the Kansas City Chiefs in this Sunday's AFC Championship Game away from making its first Super Bowl appearance since January 1994, multiple members of the Bills expanded on what Allen has meant to the organization since the start of this past summer's training camp workouts. 

"I don't think it was until this year that [the] whole thing came full circle and he had to be 'that guy,'" Buffalo safety Micah Hyde said during a recent chat with Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN. "I think this organization is built for him to do that now."

Many wondered how Allen would react to the Bills trading star wide receiver Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans before the 2024 NFL Draft. It turns out Allen hasn't yet missed Diggs all that much during games. 

According to the StatMuse website, Allen finished this past regular season ranked fourth in the league with 40 combined passing and rushing scores. Per Pro Football Reference, he and Baltimore Ravens star Lamar Jackson ended Week 18 tied for first among qualified players with a 77.3 adjusted QBR. 

"Just his demeanor, the way he prepares ... on the TV you can see when Josh is really like, he's flexing on people," Hyde continued. "He's out there talking junk. That's when he's in his zone, that's when he's doing his best and just a hell of a football player."

In the dominant 31-7 wild-card playoff victory over the Denver Broncos back on Jan. 12, Allen completed 20-of-26 pass attempts for 272 yards with two touchdowns. The following weekend, he found the end zone twice with his legs to help Buffalo earn a nervy 27-25 divisional-round win over the Ravens. 

Buffalo tight end Dawson Knox told Getzenberg how Allen's pregame speeches have been "on point" throughout a journey that included the Bills going 13-4 before they notched back-to-back postseason victories. 

"He's been incredible. We look to him as our leader," Knox added about Allen. "The whole team does, not just the offense, and I mean, he bears the weight of this whole city on his shoulders and he does it gracefully and very humbly."

As of Friday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Bills as 1.5-point underdogs against the Chiefs. While Allen is 0-3 against Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes in the postseason, Bills linebacker Terrel Bernard seems confident his QB1 won't be burdened by that fact this Sunday.

"His leadership and his mentality is kind of infectious for the whole team," Bernard said about Allen.