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Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen just joined Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes in an elite honor for the 2026-27 season.

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen sacrificed a piece of himself for the team’s playoff run this year — and said he tried to get it back.

Allen suffered a broken foot in a win over the Cleveland Browns last in the regular season, playing hurt through the final two weeks and playoffs before undergoing surgery in January. Allen spoke out about the surgery this week, revealing that he had an unusual request for the doctors who performed the procedure.

Josh Allen, Bone Collector

Speaking to reporters at the team’s optional practices this week, Allen said the procedure removed a small piece of bone that had broken off in his foot. The Bills quarterback wanted to keep the piece, but said doctors disposed of it too quickly.

“A little piece of bone just kind of broke off and was floating there,” Allen said, via The Athletic. “So they went in, took it out — like a small rock. They just cut her out, leave it on the table, sew it back up, and scar tissue will form around it, and it feels really good right now.”

Allen is no stranger to playing hurt. He also suffered a broken bone in his left (non-throwing) hand during a Week 1 win over the Arizona Cardinals in 2024, playing through discomfort the rest of the season and using a padded glove.

Allen also had a shoulder injury in 2023 that forced him to alter his throwing motion, leading him to work with a sports science company the next summer to fix his mechanics and improve efficiency in his throws.

Josh Allen Earned Praise for Attendance

New Bills head coach Joe Brady shared some praise for Allen at this week’s practices, saying his attendance at the optional sessions sets a good example for others. Allen has a busy personal life, with he and wife Hailee Steinfeld welcoming their first child earlier this month.

“He’s got a lot going on in his life,” Brady said. “It’s hard for me to tell other people, ‘Hey, man, I’d love for you to be here,’ but the guy I’ve been spending so much time with so many years, he wasn’t here, right? That was important to me.

“It was a great tone-setter because everybody understands how important the organization, the Bills, everything we do is for him and to him. That was a life change, and for him to be, like, ‘OK, but I also got a job to do. I’m going to come be with my guys and do what I have to do.’ Speaks to kind of who he is.”

Allen admitted that he hasn’t had much energy to focus on the team beyond his own role, saying he has no input on how the team should use its top draft pick.

“To be quite honest, I’ve been in this baby bubble — the baby loop, as I like to call it,” Allen said. “So I couldn’t tell you what’s going on with the draft and who’s going where and how many picks each team has.”