NFL analyst delivers grim outlook for Josh Allen and Bills' Super Bowl dreams - "They're at a severe talent deficit"
Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills have been playing like Super Bowl contenders for most of the 2024 season, dominating most of the opposition they have faced. And yet at least one person is not convinced of their potential: Chris Broussard.
The quarterback has had an impeccable MVP-leading performance: 38 total touchdowns (26 passing, 11 rushing and one receiving), a passer rating of 101.2 (his highest since 2020) and career bests in interceptions, sacks and fumbles.
But on Tuesday's episode of "First Things First," the veteran sports journalist said that, given the injuries to defensive backs Rasul Douglas, Taylor Rapp and Damar Hamlin, the five-time AFC East champions were less talented than other contenders the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens:
“I’ll be fairly stunned if they get to the Super Bowl. They’re at a severe talent deficit to a lot of the other contenders. I mean, Josh has to be Superman. And it's one thing to be Superman in the regular season. To do that four times in the playoffs? He's going to have to be Superman every week for them to win.”
Josh Allen discusses Bills' planned approach in final two games
Despite already clinching their division yet again, the Bills can still clinch the AFC's top seed. However, they must win their last two games (New York Jets and New England Patriots) and hope that the Chiefs lose their last two (Pittsburgh Steelers and Denver Broncos), in which case win-over-the-other will apply.
Consequently, Josh Allen is torn between pursuing that position and the accompanying first-round bye and reserving his full strength for the playoffs.
Speaking after the defeat of the Patriots, he said:
“We’re in a weird spot right now where we’re still fighting for the one seed, but we don’t control our own destiny. As an offense it’s, ‘How much are we willing to show? Are we wanting to go extreme and show everything in our arsenal?' There’s a line that you’ve got to toe.”
He also discussed his injury scare during the game, when he hit his right elbow on something hard early in the fourth quarter:
“It took a good five to 10 minutes of just making sure, trying to get some blood flow back in there, some activation. When it’s cold like that, when you leave it out the number the whole hand gets. So, it’s a weird feeling. Just glad it’s gone now.”
Kickoff for the Bills-Jets game is at 1 p.m. ET on CBS.