How A Small-Town Farmer Became An NFL Superstar

before he was hurdling DBS Trucking linebackers or launching absolute nukes for the bills Josh Allen lived a shockingly quiet life on a farm and despite being a freak athlete with a rocket for an arm he was overlooked by every division one college program in the country this is the story of Josh Allen and how he went from zero star recruit to NFL superstar and his story starts on a 3 Acre cotton Farm in the small town of fireball California Josh Allen was born on May 21st 199 6 to leavon and Joel Allen as the second of four children and his hometown Fireball was Tiny with a population of just 8,600 people but without that upbringing Josh wouldn't be the player he is today I think that's why Josh developed into the player that he did because he didn't have a lot of the distractions that that he would have had living in a larger town or a big city in 2017 he told ESPN that his dad worked as tail off to provide for our family if I'm half the man he is I'll be all right in this world so Allen followed his dad's lead this included hacking weeds digging ditches and moving irrigation pipes we didn't grow up in in where we can just hop on our bikes and go to a buddy's house like me and my siblings like we had to figure out like how to have fun on the farm he'd also helped his mother at their family restaurant farmer's daughter but as you might have guessed Josh kept himself busy with other Hobbies outside the farm life he played every sport in the book football baseball basketball he even swam in the summer and he was great at every sport he played he led the Fireball high school basketball team in scoring and could throw a 90 mph fast ball but because he played so many sports and was busy with practices and the farm he didn't have time to attend high-profile football camps to get more exposure and it didn't help that fireball was far from a football Powerhouse in fact their rival School Mendota always destroyed them when they played but that would all change once Josh Allen arrived well and grew because when he started High School Allen was listed at a skinny 6' to 180 lb and he didn't even start until his junior year however those final two years he balled out his junior year included 26 touchdowns leading his team to a 7 and3 record and they beat their rival M DOTA for the first time in over 10 years then his senior year was even more impressive because Allen threw 33 touchdowns and just five interceptions with the best record in school history he ended his high school career throwing for 5,200 yard and 59 touchdowns in fact Allen is the only player in Fireball High School history to have his number retired and completely turning around the fortunes of a historically terrible high school program had to have some weight in college recruiting right nope not at all his competition was considered weak so Allen received zero division one offers despite his Stellar High School career he did receive a walk-on option from San Diego State but this came with no guarantee that he would get playing time but even as a zero star recruit he still confidently said I'm not stopping until I hit the NFL now Josh Allen could have stopped playing football then and there but a man by the name of Ernie Rodriguez kept Allen on the field he was the offensive coordinator at Reedley College and was the one coach who actually believed in Allen's ability on the football field he saw something in the fireball High School star outside of him being ranked top four in the nation in Diversified Crop Production so Josh attended the Joo Reedley College which was just 1 hour away from Fireball but even Junior College started rough Allen started his JC career as a backup for the first three games and after growing 2 in now standing at 6'5 210 lb he got his chance and he showed out in his very first Collegiate game he ran for four touchdowns and in just 10 games he had 2,55 yards and 26 touchdowns this season was one for the record books because the team averaged 42. 2 yard per game and was the ninth ranked Jo offense in all California and Allen was a huge part of that because Reedley put up 285. 0 passing yards per game and 39.

4 points per game which was 10th in the state this success LED Allan to have even greater motivation to play Division 1 football he was ready but no one was calling so he had to do it himself Allan sent emails to every possible College in the nation from Alabama to Washington he held out hope his messages look like this even linking his football highlights plus now he was even bigger still 6'5 but now weighing 238 lb however just two colleges came back with offers Eastern Michigan and Wyoming and here's where it got weird because Wyoming had scouted Reedley College for one of Allen's teammates and they didn't offer Allen a scholarship until they found out they lost another Prospect they wanted Eric dunie who went to Syracuse then Eastern Michigan rescinded their offer after Allan visited Wyoming but that's okay because Wyoming coach Craig bull was the only FBS coach in the entire nation that came to directly visit Josh Allen in California simply telling his dad we went all around the country and there's only one quarterback we want and that's your son he's going to be the face of our program still Allen held out hope for his favorite team growing up Fresno State the team he dreamed of playing for since he was 8 years old but Fresno State went with another option so after they got commitment from the smaller 175 lb Chas and Virgil Allan emailed him saying 6'1 170 to which they responded yeah we got our guy good luck so off to Wyoming Allan went with an even bigger chip on his shoulder but this marked the beginning of an even more challenging chapter of his football career in 2015 Josh started his career at Wyoming as the backup behind Cameron Kaufman an Indiana graduate transfer but it didn't take long for Allen to get his chance because in the 2015 opener Kaufman injured his knee so Josh started the second game of the season ironically against the team that passed on him Eastern Michigan but in just the first first quarter a 24 yd run turned into a disaster Allen's collar bone shattered into seven different pieces quickly ending his 2015 season as a medical red shirt after just 13 plays however this extra time actually helped because he took that time to not only study the Playbook but to get faster and stronger but the mental part of the game is always the most important factor which is also why this video is brought to you by betterhelp and during football season it's easy to lose track of what matters most yourself we're also concerned with whether or not our team will get a win this week or what player to start in fantasy football or maybe you're just a Jets fan and for that I'm sorry but there's really no better way to treat yourself than therapy therapy can have so many positive impacts on your life like improved mental health better self-awareness and coping strategies for life's many challenges like your team blowing a fourth quarter lead it's also great for strengthening relationships because we all have that friend who just won't stop talking about their team being the best so if therapy sounds like something that could be good for you give better help a try it's entirely online and designed to be convenient flexible and suited to your schedule all you have to do is fill out a brief questionnaire to get matched with a licensed therapist and you're able to switch therapists anytime for no additional charge so let the Gratitude flow with betterhelp visit betterhelp. com blit toay to get 10% off your first month that's better help h hp. com Blitz in 2016 Allen was the Cowboy's day one starter and this is the season he put college football on notice this included one of the biggest wins in Wyoming history beating the 13th ranked Boise State 3028 early in the season and with two big wins against top 25 teams the Cowboys put up 35.

9 points per game good for second in the Mountain West and 25th in the entire nation Allen threw for 3,23 yard and 36 total touchdowns 28 passing seven rushing and one receiving touchdown however it wasn't all great he also threw 15 interceptions and completed just 56% of his passes that year but it didn't matter because Wyoming took home the Mountain West Conference regular season title and played San Diego State for the conference Championship falling 2724 this season was a major stepping stone for Josh so big that he even considered taking the next big leap to the NFL he talked with multiple people to make a decision this included his dad head coach Craig Bow and even Carson Wentz but bow ultimately convinced him by saying do you want to get drafted or do you want a career so Josh remained with the Cowboys with a new purpose that purpose was solely to prepare for a future in the NFL and in 2017 many people including Adam shefer said Josh Allen will be the number one pick in the NFL draft next year but it didn't start the way you would expect with a young roster that lost four allconference players to the NFL the Cowboys lost two out of their first three games keep in mind those losses were to FBS powerhouses Iowa and Oregon and Allen wasn't looking great he started the season with just seven touchdowns to six picks he was also held to under 100 passing yards in back-to-back games against Oregon and Hawaii but the season did improve he finished the season throwing 10 more touchdowns and zero interceptions Wyoming finished 8 and five and Allen was invited to the man Passing Academy that junee but still there were tons of questions surrounding Josh as he was set to enter the NFL many thought Allen was too raw and too inaccurate to last in the league he drew comparisons to everyone from John Elway to JaMarcus Russell the arguments piled up inaccurate all I care about is his inaccuracy he completed 56% of his passes which is not very good didn't step up against good teams throwing the ball 70 mph isn't important how often is he going to need a set to throw the ball 90 yard he might throw what one Hail Mary per year this is unimportant to me and a stacked quarterback class in 2018 made it difficult to place Allen but if we look at his 2018 draft profile many could argue it was right on the money a round one pick a 6. 4 Prospect grade and said to become a good starter within 2 years so how did those first two years go the Buffalo Bills took Allen with the seventh overall pick they traded up from 12th to get him as they had an up and down experience with Rod Taylor from 2015 to 2017 however Allen was not named a starter at the beginning of his rookie season but it wouldn't take long during the season opener against Baltimore then starter Nathan Peterman posted a 0. 0 passer rating with five picks in the first half so Allen was asked to step up in his first NFL action ever on September 9th 2018 Allen had 74 passing yards but they lost 47-3 then the next week he was asked to start in Allen's 2018 rookie season he was five- six as a starter and just like the record Allen showed flashes of great play but also some horrible decision-making he ended 2018 with more interceptions than passing touchdowns but also had eight rushing TDS for analysts this was almost spoton with their predictions flashes of greatness but overall inconsistent and a project quarterback the bills didn't make the playoffs and they ended Allen's rookie year with a 6 and 10 record which was worse than their record in 2017 so there was nowhere to go but up the next season not only did the Bills flip their record to 10- six Allen made massive strides and the numbers prove it 3,089 passing yards 20 passing touchdowns nine rushing TDS and just nine interceptions as he improved his completion percentage by 6% but the most important part the bills made the playoffs they took on the Texans in the Wild Card round but a back and forth battle would end in an epic overtime loss despite starting the game up 160 and Allen throwing for 264 yards remember that 2018 draft profile well he did become a good starter within 2 years and this was just the beginning because not only did Josh Allen start to understand the NFL game within 2 years he was about to take the biggest leap of his young career 2020 brought tons of expectations not only did the playoff performance against Houston bring hope the bills also acquired Stefan Diggs from the Vikings as a playmaker to help Allan when I anticipa in coming here I knew Josh Allen was a good quarterback and 2020 Started Hot the very first game of the year against the Jets Allen had his first 300 yd passing game he went for 312 yds two passing touchdowns a rushing TD and a 72% completion percentage oh and the bills won 2717 then it only got better the very next week Allen threw for 47 yards and four touchdowns against Miami and the way he did it was even more impressive as he had this 46y pass to win the game in the fourth quarter the next week he had his third straight 300 plus yard passing game against the Rams to go with another four touchdowns he actually became the first player in NFL history to have more than one 400 yard three touchdown game without a pick in a season and this was just halfway through the year the Bills were also becoming one of the best teams in the NFL finishing the regular season with a 13-3 record and an AFC East title their first since 1995 and Allen was a huge part of that he finished the regular season with 4544 passing yards a Bill's single season record and 37 passing touchdowns to just 10 picks he also had eight rushing touchdowns and because of his Stellar play he became a household name not only did he become a pro bowler he also placed second in MVP voting and was second Team all pro 2020 brought more success than the bills had seen in decades because for the first time since 1993 they went all the way to the AFC Championship game after beating Indianapolis and Baltimore in the playoffs the 2020 AFC Championship was rough playing the Chiefs Kansas City's defense was smothering including this late game interception on Allen to seal it it was the first Red Zone pick of Allen's career despite this disappointing loss to win the season this was Allen's one and only interception of the playoffs and he increased his completion percentage by 12% from the previous postseason he also became the first bills player to win AFC offensive player of the week honors at Le at least three times in one season doing so four times it was now abundantly clear that the bills found the face of their franchise so they had to make sure he was there for the Long Haul on August 6th 2021 Allen signed a 6-year $258 million contract extension with the bills then making him the second highest paid NFL player in the league at $43 million a year and it included a then record 150 million guaranteed this money has been um awarded but I gotta go out there and continue to earn it now the money was there and it was time for Josh to prove the bills made the right decision by taking them to the next level and in 2021 he played like a superstar in week two against Miami he passed 10,000 passing yards in his career in week five against Kansas City he passed Jim Kelly for the most touchdown passes in Bill's history through his first four seasons 82 to Kelly's 81 and there were still 11 weeks left in his fourth season despite finishing the regular season 11- six the bills took home their second straight AFC East title Allen had 4,47 passing yards 36 passing touchdowns and a career-high 49 completions and they would run into a familiar opponent but first the bills played the first perfect offensive game against the patriots beating New England in the Wild Card round 4717 with a touchdown on every single offensive possession and Allen had five touchdown passes which led them to another meeting with Kansas City in the divisional round and this game was an instant classic the back and forth battle ended regulation with a 13-second field goal drive by the Chiefs sending it to overtime but this is where it got controversial because Kansas City won the coin toss immediately scored winning 4236 it is caught by Kelsey touchdown and Josh Allen never got to touch the ball Josh Allen was incredible they lost but they didn't deserve to lose this gave way to a new rule that was introduced in the 2023 postseason appropriately nicknamed the Josh Allen rule giving the second team the opportunity to match if the first team scores despite this controversial end to a season Allen set the highest passer rating in a single postseason in 2021 with 149.