ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. – Josh Allen is not who he used to be.
In one way, he’s less of a man.
There are 206 bones in the human body, but the Buffalo Bills quarterback now has just 205 and a half after a dislodged, wandering chunk was removed from his right foot.
Yet in a more significant way, Allen has never felt more complete as he enters his ninth pursuit of Buffalo’s first Lombardi Trophy.
“The ‘want to win’ will never change. The ‘why I want to do it’ has,” Allen said Monday, his first words to reporters since his daughter was born. “Why I want to do it: to show my family, to show my daughter how hard you need to work in order to accomplish something so great. And as long as I play this game, that’s going to be my mindset.”
Allen has a new head coach, new offensive coordinator, new quarterbacks coach and will get several new teammates through the NFL Draft later this week.
But the newness at home has been most compelling. Allen praised his actress wife, Hailee Steinfeld, for how she’s handled being a first-time mom.
“I do think this is going to be the best version of myself in all aspects in my professional career and my personal life,” Allen said. “It’s such a blessing.
“I’ve got an absolute rock star of a wife that’s doing so many things right now and allowing me to be here right now and be with my teammates. So it’s special times.”
The Bills are entering a new era after firing longtime coach Sean McDermott. They promoted offensive coordinator Joe Brady, a move aligned with Allen’s influence. As such, Allen’s already-resonant leadership will become even more crucial to the transition.
Buffalo’s three workout sessions this week are voluntary. Allen also attended an April 7 gathering that wasn’t mandatory.
“He’s got a lot going on in his life,” Brady said. “It’s hard for me to tell other people, ‘Hey, man, I’d love for you to be here,’ but the guy I’ve been spending so much time with so many years, he wasn’t here, right? That was important to me.
“It was a great tone-setter because everybody understands how important the organization, the Bills, everything we do is for him and to him. That was a life change, and for him to be, like, ‘OK, but I also got a job to do. I’m going to come be with my guys and do what I have to do.’ Speaks to kind of who he is.”
Next month, Allen will turn 30. The 2024 MVP might be the NFL’s eighth-oldest starting quarterback this year, depending on what Aaron Rodgers decides and what other clubs do with their veterans.
Asked about the milestone birthday, Allen sounded like he was leaning into how life unfolded for legendary quarterbacks such as Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Steve Young and Matthew Stafford — all of whom won their first Super Bowls as thirtysomethings.
“I’m not too sure on the science of the athletic peak of a male, but I think it’s slightly beyond 30,” Allen replied, “and then hopefully the dad strength kicks in, right?”
Allen declared his broken right foot fully recovered, albeit not fully intact.
He reinjured a previously unknown fracture in last season’s Week 16 victory over the Cleveland Browns. The damaged bone healed at some point, but while trying to escape sack demon Myles Garrett, Allen made a sudden step that “jolted it loose.” Allen returned to the game and didn’t miss any time because of the injury, but required surgery.
“A little piece of bone just kind of broke off and was floating there,” Allen said. “So they went in, took it out — like a small rock. They just cut her out, leave it on the table, sew it back up, and scar tissue will form around it, and it feels really good right now.”
Allen on Monday wore a blue Buffalo Sabres ballcap and a blue Sabres hoodie in support of Bills owner Terry Pegula’s other team making the playoffs for the first time in 15 years. The Sabres opened their series against the Boston Bruins with a thrilling 4-3 victory Sunday night.
Allen is expected to lead the KeyBank Center crowd Tuesday night by pounding the “Let’s Go Buffalo” drum before Game 2.
As for what he would like the Bills to do in the NFL Draft, Allen should have banged the drum for a sleeper.
“To be quite honest, I’ve been in this baby bubble — the baby loop, as I like to call it,” Allen said. “So I couldn’t tell you what’s going on with the draft and who’s going where and how many picks each team has.”