Getty
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is up for Most Valuable Player in the NFL once again, but there’s some bad news attached.
Even though the Buffalo Bills and Josh Allen won’t be in Super Bowl LX this Sunday, Allen will still be keeping a close eye on the game.
Allen Named Reason He Won’t be Rooting For Patriots
On Tuesday, Allen joined the Fox Sports 1 talk show “First Things First”, where he shared his thoughts on which team he’ll be cheering for in the Super Bowl between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks.
“Sam Darnold, that’s my boy,” Allen said. “We go back to the Draft. I’m rooting for my man there, #14 for the Seattle Seahawks.”
Allen and Darnold entered the NFL together in 2018, with the New York Jets selecting Darnold as the third overall pick and the Bills choosing Allen at seventh overall.
Darnold and Allen followed two distinct paths to their NFL stardom, with Darnold taking over six seasons to finally grasp the nuances of the game at the professional level.
Darnold Had a Rocky First Six NFL Seasons
It certainly didn’t help that Darnold ended up with the Jets, a team known for their struggles in developing franchise quarterbacks. Over three seasons in New York, Darnold posted a disappointing 13-25 record before the Jets traded him to the Carolina Panthers in 2021.
Carolina didn’t turn out to be a standout stop on his NFL journey, as he played for the Panthers for two seasons and ultimately lost the starting job in 2022 to Baker Mayfield.
Despite his challenging experiences in New York and Carolina, Darnold still has a love for those teams.
“You don’t want to make the same mistakes again, but…the days in New York, the days in Carolina, those were part of my journey,” Darnold said on Friday during the “Dan Patrick Show”, via The Jets Press Charlie Baduini. “They’re part of my experience, and I loved every single part of it, yeah, there were some lows that sucked, I’m not gonna lie to you, you know, and that’s part of it.”
Darnold began to find his footing in 2023 as a backup with the 49ers before signing with the Vikings in 2024. Minnesota drafted quarterback J.J. McCarthy in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, and he was expected to step in as their starter at some point during the season.
However, McCarthy suffered a season-ending injury during the preseason, allowing Darnold to start the entire season. Darnold never looked back, leading the Vikings to a 14-3 record, throwing for 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns. This offseason, the Seahawks finalized a three-year, $100.5 million contract with Darnold.
Darnold Now Has a Chance to Win a Super Bowl
Now, Darnold will have the opportunity to compete for a Super Bowl before Allen, who has had a considerably better career up to this point. Allen has remained with the same team throughout his first eight seasons and has emerged as one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL since 2020.
A few years ago, Darnold was a backup, and now he is one of the best players in the NFL. It’s crazy how Darnold’s career has gone, and now it’s time for him to win a Super Bowl.
Danny Fisher Is a football journalist covering the Buffalo Bills for Heavy.com. He has covered the NFL for Gridiron Heroics, focusing on the AFC and Penn State football for Nittany Central. More about Danny Fisher
More Heavy on Bills
Loading more stories