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Bills' Josh Allen Declines 2022 NFL Pro Bowl Alternate Invite After Loss vs. Chiefs
January 27, 2022
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen declined an invitation to participate in the 2022 Pro Bowl as an alternate Thursday.
ESPN's Chris Mortensen tweeted the statement Allen made on the matter:
Despite putting up monster numbers, Allen was not selected to the Pro Bowl, with Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers, Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs and Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens being chosen for the AFC team.
Allen's season came to a heartbreaking end Sunday when the Bills fell in overtime 42-36 to the Chiefs in the divisional round of the playoffs.
Over the past two seasons, Allen has shed the presumptuous labels of being too raw or too inaccurate to be a top quarterback in the NFL.
His true breakout season occurred in 2020 when he completed 69.2 percent of his passes for 4,544 yards, 37 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, while also rushing for 421 yards and eight scores.
Allen was named a Pro Bowler for the first time in his career, finishing second to Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers in the NFL MVP voting and took the Bills to the AFC Championship Game.
The 2018 No. 7 overall draft pick out of Wyoming was excellent again this season for a Bills team that won its second consecutive AFC East title.
Allen completed 63.3 percent of his passing attempts for 4,407 yards, 36 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. He also rushed for a career-high 763 yards to go along with six scores.
It came as a shock that Allen was left off the Pro Bowl roster given that he enjoyed one of the best seasons ever by a dual-threat quarterback.
While it is difficult to argue with Herbert or Mahomes being left off the team, naming Jackson to the Pro Bowl over Allen was a clear oversight, as he missed five games and finished with only 2,882 yards, 16 touchdowns and 13 interceptions through the air, while rushing for 767 yards and two scores.
Allen erased any doubt about whether he belongs in the upper echelon of NFL quarterbacks with his postseason performance.
In playoff games against the New England Patriots and Chiefs, Allen completed 77.4 percent of his passes for 637 yards, nine touchdowns and no interceptions. He also rushed for 134 yards on 17 carries.
Allen's performance against Mahomes and the Chiefs was one of the best ever by a quarterback in a losing playoff effort. He went 27-of-37 for 329 yards with four touchdowns, two of which came during the final two minutes of regulation.
His final touchdown pass to wide receiver Gabriel Davis came with 13 seconds remaining and put the Bills up by three. Buffalo allowed Mahomes to get Kansas City in field goal range, however, resulting in overtime.
The Chiefs won the coin toss and the Bills never touched the ball, as Kansas City won on a touchdown pass from Mahomes to tight end Travis Kelce.
While the season ended in massive disappointment for the Bills, Allen clearly established himself as an MVP candidate to watch again in 2022 and positioned the Bills to be Super Bowl contenders.
Meanwhile, the 2022 Pro Bowl will be played on Feb. 6 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.