Josh Allen Opens Up on Diggs, Hollins, and Watching the Patriots in the Super Bowl
As the New England Patriots gear up to face the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX, two of their wide receivers-Stefon Diggs and Mack Hollins-are just days away from playing on the NFL’s biggest stage. And for Josh Allen, their former quarterback in Buffalo, it’s a bittersweet moment.
Allen, who took home MVP honors for the 2024 season, has yet to make a Super Bowl appearance himself. But this week, with two of his former targets now suiting up for an AFC East rival in the championship game, the Bills’ franchise quarterback shared some candid thoughts on seeing familiar faces one win away from hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.
“Very happy for [Diggs],” Allen said in a recent interview. “I got nothing but love and respect for Stef, and honestly we got another receiver there in Mack Hollins, too.
Those are guys that play football the right way. They work extremely hard, they practice even harder.
Very, very happy for both of those guys. ... It sucks to see an AFC East division rival get in over you, but they obviously deserve to be there.”
That last line says a lot. Allen’s competitive fire is well-known, and watching a division rival reach the Super Bowl while he’s on the outside looking in clearly stings. But there’s also a deep respect there-especially for Diggs, whose time in Buffalo was marked by both elite production and occasional tension.
From 2020 to 2023, Diggs and Allen formed one of the league’s most dangerous quarterback-receiver duos. But the relationship had its share of ups and downs, culminating in Diggs’ trade to the Houston Texans in the spring of 2024. Still, Diggs has publicly praised Allen since the move, calling him a “Hall of Fame quarterback” and reaffirming his love for Bills fans.
Now, with Diggs and Hollins catching passes for New England, Allen finds himself in the unfamiliar position of watching the Super Bowl from home-and choosing sides. And let’s just say he won’t be donning any Patriots gear on Sunday.
“As a Bill and a Bills fan, I don’t know if anyone is going to be rooting for the Pats,” Allen said during a CBS Sports HQ appearance.
That said, Allen isn’t exactly rooting against the Patriots either-at least not on a personal level. He was quick to shout out several players and coaches he respects on the New England roster, including head coach Mike Vrabel.
“With that being said, I’ve got so much love and respect for a lot of guys on that team, [head coach Mike Vrabel] included. He’s a fantastic coach. He’s a fantastic person.”
Allen also has a personal rooting interest on the other side of the field: Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold. The two are close friends, and Darnold’s journey-from early struggles with the Jets to leading Seattle to the Super Bowl-hasn’t gone unnoticed by Allen.
So while he’s happy for Diggs and Hollins, and respectful of what Vrabel and the Patriots have accomplished, Allen’s heart is clearly with Darnold and the Seahawks this weekend.
Looking ahead, Allen knows the road to the Super Bowl will continue to run through some tough competition-including a Patriots team that looks poised to be a contender for the foreseeable future under Vrabel. But for now, he’s watching from afar, reflecting on old teammates, and fueling the fire for another run at the big game.
Because for Josh Allen, MVP trophies are nice-but the one that really matters still awaits.