EXCLUSIVE: Josh Allen Has Invented Groundbreaking New Way To Gain 1st Down
As Halloween approaches, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen has taken on the persona of a mad scientist, with the football field serving as his experimental lab. While fans have long marveled at the traditional plays—quarterbacks running and passing for first downs, the same way legends like Jim Thorpe did more than a century ago—the repetition has made it all feel predictable. This standard approach to moving the ball downfield was beginning to lose its charm.
Sensing this stagnation, Josh Allen found a way to electrify the game. On October 27, 2024, at precisely 5:11 PM EDT, Allen added a surprising new twist: he kicked for a first down.
The Bills were facing the Seattle Seahawks in Seattle, where relentless Pacific Northwestern rain set a dramatic scene. With Buffalo holding a slim 7-3 lead and just under three minutes left in the second quarter, Allen took a shotgun snap from center Connor McGovern on a pivotal 3rd-and-5 play. The Seahawks’ “12th man” fan base filled the stadium with deafening noise as Allen was forced out of the pocket, scrambling upfield in a situation where he’d typically try to run through or jump over defenders. This time, however, three Seahawks defenders converged, making the first down seem out of reach.
Then, in a split-second decision, Allen changed the script entirely. He spotted running back Ty Johnson a few yards downfield. Yet, knowing that a standard pass attempt would likely fall short due to tight coverage by Seattle safety Julian Love, he executed a move that no one saw coming. Dropping the ball to the turf, Allen gave it a quick kick, directing it past Love and perfectly into Johnson’s hands to secure the first down.
Some might call this move risky or sloppy, but to an optimist, it was nothing short of ingenious—a play as bold and visionary as Messi’s best footwork. With one decisive and calculated move, Allen redefined the quarterback’s role and perhaps sparked a new era in football innovation. This single kick may have made Allen not just a quarterback but a pioneering figure, potentially altering the game’s future. In a league known for copying trends, it will be fascinating to see if other quarterbacks follow Allen’s lead and start incorporating kicks into their arsenals. After all, it’s called “football,” isn’t it?
just joshing around for the first down 😭@JoshAllenQB | @BuffaloBills pic.twitter.com/1b5PBXSj6Q
— NFL (@NFL) October 28, 2024
The State of the AFC East
At the halfway mark in the season, the Buffalo Bills have established such a stronghold on the AFC East that even the fictional Scranton Strangler might be impressed by their grip. Buffalo sits comfortably at the top with a 6-2 record, leaving the Miami Dolphins trailing by 3.5 games at 2-5. Although the Dolphins recently welcomed quarterback Tua Tagovailoa back after another concussion, they still struggled in his return, falling to the Cardinals. With a tough road game in Buffalo looming this week, Miami faces a daunting task.
Since Josh Allen joined the team, the Bills have consistently dominated the Dolphins, boasting an 11-2 regular season record against them, a 1-0 advantage in the playoffs, and an unblemished record in Orchard Park. For Miami to overcome this recurring nightmare and defeat their formidable division rival, they will need a significant lift from Tagovailoa, who has been plagued by injuries throughout his career.
Meanwhile, at the bottom of the division, the standings are a mix of the expected and unexpected, with the New England Patriots and New York Jets both sitting at 2-6, seemingly on life support for the season. Though there are still games to be played, and anything can happen on “Any given Sunday,” the Bills look poised to cruise to their fifth consecutive AFC East title, continuing their dominance over their divisional rivals.