Josh Allen Talks HBO Hard Knocks, Bills GM Beane, Keon Coleman, More in B/R Interview

All eyes will be on the Buffalo Bills next month when training camp begins at St. John Fisher University in Rochester, New York, and superstar quarterback Josh Allen will take center stage.

The reigning NFL MVP sat down with Bleacher Report this week to discuss several topics, including the Bills being chosen as the subject for the newest season of the hit HBO docuseries Hard Knocks.

Hard Knocks has captivated football fans since 2001, as it follows a team through the trials and tribulation of training camp leading up to the start of the NFL regular season, and the Bills are now set to be highlighted on the show for the first time.

Allen acknowledged some of the challenges that can come along with something like Hard Knocks potentially creating a distraction, but he also expressed his belief that the team is capable of locking in and focusing on the task at hand, saying:

"There's a couple thoughts that you can have. You can be mad or sad about it and let it deter you from creating your team chemistry, or just say it is what it is and you continue to be yourself. And that's what we're gonna do. We're gonna continue to be ourselves.

"I do feel like sometimes it can be a little drama-y in the past, but we're not gonna let that become what we are. It'll be a cool way for fans and people to see what our organization, what our team is all about. We do have some very cool stories that hopefully they can highlight, so I'm very excited for that part of it. Just making sure that we're gonna stay true to who we are."

The Bills have long been known as a team that boasts a loyal and passionate fanbase, but thanks in large part to the success they have experienced in recent years, their popularity has expanded far beyond Western New York.

With Allen at the helm, the Bills have matched their franchise record with six consecutive playoff appearances, and set a new franchise record with five straight division titles.

Despite winning 71 regular-season games over the past six campaigns, a Super Bowl appearance has eluded the Bills. They reached their second AFC Championship Game in the past five years last season, but the Kansas City Chiefs knocked them out of the playoffs for the fourth time since 2020.

While perhaps discouraging for the Bills and their fans, there is reason to believe 2025 could finally be Buffalo's year, and it starts with the moves made by general manager Brandon Beane this offseason.

Most notably, Beane loaded up on defense, using each of the Bills' first five picks in the 2025 NFL draft on the defensive side of the ball.

Defense has largely been the Bills' undoing over their past five playoff runs, as they have allowed an average of 33.2 points per game in their season-ending playoff losses during that stretch.

In an effort to flip the script, Beane selected Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston, South Carolina defensive tackle T.J. Sanders, Arkansas pass-rusher Landon Jackson, Kentucky defensive tackle Deone Walker and Ohio State defensive back Jordan Hancock.

Allen likes what he saw out of the rookies in minicamp and has high hopes for them during the 2025 campaign, saying:

"I get paid to play quarterback, and not the personnel decisions or what Brandon Beane does or our front office does, but I trust in what they're doing. In getting to meet some of these younger guys and see them on a football field, I feel like we've drafted a few studs. I really do believe that, and they're gonna help our team immensely. I'm very excited about that.

"We've got some good veteran leadership in the locker room right now, obviously bringing Tre White back in that cornerback room, as well as Dane Jackson. There's a lot of potential in that room and hopefully the guys we picked are gonna continue to work hard and rely on some of these vets we have in our building."

While Beane has built a perennial contender, he has come under fire at times the past couple of years due to his handling of the wide receiver position.

Last offseason, Beane traded star wideout Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans on the heels of Diggs recording four consecutive 100-catch and 1,000-yard seasons in Buffalo, earning him four Pro Bowl nods.

Rather than making a big trade or signing to replace Diggs, Beane traded back into the top of the second round of the 2024 NFL draft to select Florida State wideout Keon Coleman.

He followed that up by signing Josh Palmer and Elijah Moore in free agency this offseason, and he didn't address the receiver position in the 2025 NFL draft until the seventh round when he selected Maryland's Kaden Prather.

During the aftermath of the draft, Beane appeared on the Jeremy and Joe Show on Buffalo's local sports talk radio station WGR 550 and went on the offensive, chiding the hosts for their complaints about not drafting a wide receiver earlier:

Beane's comments went viral, and Allen divulged that he loved seeing the GM go to bat for the guys on the roster, saying: "I thought the reaction was awesome. I don't have social media, so I had a few people send it to me and I watched it, and just to hear him get so fired about it is freaking awesome."

Allen also gave his thoughts on the current state of the Bills' receiving corps, acknowledging that while it may not include a WR1 alpha like some teams have, it does boast an array of different abilities and a collective willingness to do whatever it takes to win:

"The wide receiver room right now, I feel like there's so many different guys that have such different skill sets. We've got football players in that room, I wouldn't say we have wide receivers. We have football players who are constantly doing the right things. They're showing up, they're working out, they're running hard at practice. If you watch our games, we have so many guys that if the ball's on the other side of the field, they are sprinting to make sure if there's a fumble or if they can spring an extra block that's what they're doing because they care so much about the team.

"I think everyone in that room right now has that same mindset of everybody eats. Sometimes I might have to go block a safety. Sometimes I'm gonna have to run the 'for the love of the game' route to try to take the safety away from the in-cut. They know that if they do that for their teammate, their teammate's gonna do that for them. I love who we've got in there with Khalil [Shakir] and Keon. Bringing in a guy like Josh Palmer, having Curtis [Samuel], signing Elijah Moore. Then you throw in our other weapons at the tight end position and the running back position, there's a lot of variability with our group and I'm very excited to continue to work with our guys."

The continued development of Coleman may be the biggest key to the overall success of Buffalo's receivers in 2025, as the 22-year-old is coming off an up-and-down rookie campaign.

Although Coleman caught only 29 passes as a rookie, and he made them count, racking up 556 yards and four touchdowns despite missing four games due to injury. His 19.2 yards per catch underscore his big-play ability, which offensive coordinator Joe Brady would undoubtedly like to unlock more consistently during the offseason.

Coleman's improved physique was a major talking point during Bills minicamp, and Allen seems to believe it could be a harbinger of things to come for the young wideout, saying:

"He looks very smooth right now. I feel like he's put on some muscle, he's moving quicker, not just physically but mentally with our offensive system. I just think he's attacked this offseason the way you would want a second-year receiver to attack. I love the kid, he's got such a good head on his shoulders, he's a very positive person and he loves the game of football. That's what I love about him is he wants to be the best that he can be, and we're gonna continue to work hard and get to a good spot heading into the season. We're gonna continue to grow the more reps that we get."

Allen, 29, has essentially been a superstar since his third NFL season in 2020, and he has done some things never before seen in NFL history during that time.

The dual-threat signal-caller has accounted for at least 40 touchdowns in each of the past five seasons, making him the first player to ever accomplish that feat.

While the three-time Pro Bowler had three top-five NFL MVP finishes from 2020 to 2023, it wasn't until last season that he was finally recognized as the league's Most Valuable Player.

Allen had his fewest passing yards (3,731) and passing touchdowns (28) since 2019, but he also threw a career-low six interceptions and rushed for 531 yards and 12 scores for a Bills team that finished 13-4.

Although it is difficult to pinpoint some specific areas in which the reigning NFL MVP can improve entering the 2025 season, he believes there are some changes that could help him reach some untapped potential, including getting a better night's sleep.

As part of a busy offseason that saw him get married to actress and musician Hailee Steinfeld, Allen also partnered with Natrol sleep aid, starring in a commercial for the product:

Allen noted that getting proper rest is something he has long struggled with, saying: "I feel like the past couple years I've figured out what works for me diet wise, I've figured out what works for me workout wise. Sleep is one thing that's always kind of eluded what I've wanted to attack."

Allen added that there have been times throughout his career when he has had to overcome a lack of the desired amount of sleep, which is why he sought a solution:

"I think it's as important as anything that you do as a pro athlete. There's been instances in the last five or six years that I've been in the league where I wake up and I know I didn't sleep good last night. And I know I'm on the field, I'm in warmups, and my legs are a little heavy. It's like, 'All right, how do I fight through this?'

"And that's something else you have to worry about, but if you know you're getting good sleep and you're waking up feeling restored and energized, you don't have to worry about that and you're gonna perform better on the field. And that's my whole thing is how do I become the best athlete that I can be and perform my best on any given Sunday, Monday or Thursday."

No. 17 feels his new partnership has him in a good place as it relates to his sleeping patterns, but that isn't all the 2024 NFL MVP is hoping to round into form.

Like any sport, the details matter in football, and Allen wants to make sure he is properly dialed in on every front, including the minutiae of the quarterback position:

"Just decision-making. Where I'm starting my eyes given the concepts we're running, getting through my progressions quicker and mechanically making sure I'm delivering the ball as efficiently as possible. ... Making sure I'm doing all the little things right and not looking over those things."

Training camp can be a slog at times for veterans as they look ahead to the regular season and playing games that matter, but Allen is embracing the grind.

He said he is "very excited" for camp in order to fine-tune his own game and build chemistry with teammates both new and old as they unite for the common goal of bringing Buffalo its first-ever Super Bowl victory.

Fans will have the unique opportunity to watch the start of that journey when Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Buffalo Bills premieres on HBO Max on Aug. 5.