Josh Allen’s recent engagement to Hailee Steinfeld is the spark behind a season where he could ultimately win the Super Bowl trophy and be crowned NFL MVP.
The Buffalo Bills quarterback is in the form of his career and according to his teammate Dion Dawkins, life off the field plays a central role in that.
“There’s something about it,” Dawkins said Wednesday, referring to the quarterback’s romance with Steinfeld.
“When you’re in the world that we’re in, and there’s a lot of people pulling at you and a lot of sources of ups and downs of a roller coaster, and you have that one stable person that you can rely on and you can go and go home and hugging and laughing, no matter what, I love that,” Dawkins said. “And that’s what I think is going on.”
Allen didn’t deny it.
‘She played a big role. The morale, the support. When I come home, she’s my biggest fan, my biggest supporter. She is just the best,” Allen told The Associated Press.
Josh Allen has credited his stunning form this season to his fiancée Hailee Steinfeld
Allen and Steinfeld recently announced their engagement after a bye week with the Buffalo Bills
Allen and the Bills (11-3) have been on a roll for most of this season and will host the New England Patriots (3-11) on Sunday. With five games remaining, Buffalo captured its fifth straight AFC East title, beating AFC-leading Kansas City (13-1) and is After a 48-42 win over Detroit (12-2).
What’s remarkable is how the quarterback has taken his game to an even higher level since proposing to Steinfeld on Nov. 22 during the Bills’ bye week.
In the three games since then, Allen has combined for 14 touchdowns: seven passing, six rushing and one receiving on a pass he completed to Amari Cooper, who returned the ball to the quarterback.
And it would have been 15 touchdowns had his basketball-like chest pass over a flat-footed Detroit defender to wide-open tight end Dalton Kincaid in the end zone not been negated by an offensive holding penalty.
Overall, Allen’s 37 total TDs are tied for the NFL lead with Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow. On Sunday, he became the first NFL player to throw at least three touchdown passes and rush for at least two more straight games.
The Bills, meanwhile, have combined to score 90 points over the past two games, including a 44-42 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, and have scored 30 or more in eight consecutive games, tying the NFL single-season record last held by Denver equal in 2013.
Offensive coordinator Joe Brady joked that he wants to put some of Allen’s tricks into practice to show they are actually part of the game plan.
“It would make us look like better coaches,” Brady said.
In the three games since his engagement, Allen has combined for 14 touchdowns
The influence Steinfeld has had on Allen has even been noted by his Bills teammates
“But I mean, that’s him, right? He throws passes to himself. And then he can pass the chest, and we’ll see what the next step is,” he added. ‘He enjoys playing there. He has the great control, the great direction, all the trust in the world in him, and why not?’
Allen’s relationship with Steinfeld began in the spring of 2023, when photos surfaced of the two having dinner in New York City.
Steinfeld, who was nominated for an Academy Award for her role in the 2010 remake of “True Grit,” has since become a fixture at Bills Games. The couple posted photos of themselves in Paris and hosting a Halloween party.
Without naming Steinfeld, the 28-year-old Allen acknowledged he is playing the best football of his seven-year NFL career while enjoying at the same time.
“I’m just playing this game, the same game I’ve been playing since I was a kid. And that’s kind of what it comes down to,” Allen said. ‘What I get to do is a lot of fun and I want to enjoy it as much as possible.’
Dawkins sees the positive energy radiating across the team.
‘Everyone laughs. We don’t just smile because it’s Christmas. We are not just smiling because we are winning, but because the energy is good,” he said. “Josh is the head of our football team. If that’s right, everything is right.’