DETROIT — An exhausted Josh Allen palmed the back of Stefon Diggs’ head as the two shared a hug after the wide receiver came up big for the Buffalo Bills late in the fourth quarter to help deliver an important win.
Diggs was held in check for most of the afternoon, but when the Bills needed him most he took over the game. Allen and Diggs were shown on the game broadcast in a celebratory embrace minutes after the quarterback delivered an absolute laser to the All-Pro pass catcher with 23 seconds left on the clock.
The 36-yard pass play - the Bills’ longest of the game - put them in range for a Tyler Bass game-winning field goal. Diggs asked Allen to trust him late in games. When he got his chance to make plays, he rewarded his quarterback. With a win in hand, Diggs said he walked over to Allen to tell him three words: “I love you.”
“That’s like my real sibling. My little, big brother. He’s huge and all, but that’s still my little brother,” Diggs said. “I can tell that he has that energy that’s contagious. And I never want him to ever display bad body language. He’s so hard on himself because he’s a great player.”
Allen has been dealing with an injury to the UCL in his right throwing elbow since the loss against the New York Jets in Week 9. He completed just 57%t of his throws in the game and only 50% after three quarters. NFL on CBS color commentator Tony Romo said he thinks the elbow injury is impacting Allen’s ability to throw the ball.
Asked about whether he’s playing hurt like Romo insinuated, Allen said anybody who says they’re not hurt this time of year is probably lying.
“We’re 8-3. I’m out there,” he said. “Everybody’s battling injuries and bumps and bruises. If I’m going to be the guy that I think I am, I say I am, and my teammates think I am, I gotta be that guy. That’s all there is to it.”
Knowing how hard Allen can be on his own performance, Diggs said he always tries to nip it in the bud when he sees Allen coming down too hard on himself.
“I always tell him, ‘Yo, hey, chin up. We ready. It’s OK, forget about it.’ And kind of giving him that positive energy because it’s hard being quarterback, I imagine,” Diggs said. “And as much as I get frustrated, I know his job is hard.”
The Bills’ offense started off the game strong with three scores (two touchdowns) on their four first-half possessions. Starting left tackle Dion Dawkins suffered an ankle injury at the end of the second quarter and missed the rest of the game. Starting center Mitch Morse missed the game entirely with an ankle injury.
With a patchwork offensive line, Allen had to figure out a way to make plays while he was under pressure for most of the second half. Allen threw an interception on the first drive of the third quarter and then Buffalo punted on its next three drives.
Allen targeted Diggs 10 times through three quarters and he only caught three of the passes. The two superstars couldn’t get on the same page until the final two drives of the game, and then it was like old hat.
“Things aren’t gonna be perfect (but) I’m riding with my guy,” Diggs said. “We just had to try to get on the same page, every week is different. Going into that game and we wanted to execute at a high level. Things didn’t happen perfectly, but we figured it out.
Diggs reminded Allen that football is a child’s game after all. He couldn’t help but rejoice after the two put on a show and made the plays necessary to get the win.
“(I told him) Let’s get the ball rolling, let’s get back to having fun again. Because I felt like we got away from it a little bit,” Diggs said. “So I tell him: ‘I love you. Let’s get back to having fun and let’s go back to winning.’”
Mission accomplished on Thanksgiving in Detroit for Diggs, Allen, and the Bills.
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