OUTSIDE LINEBACKER JOSH ALLEN
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10, 2024
(On if he was content with the timing of signing the contract) “Good things come to those who wait. For
me, it was just to see when the right opportunity was going to come, just maximize the value that I could
bring and maximize the value that I think I should. We agreed on both parts, it was like this, we could’ve
gone either way. We agreed this is the perfect timing for us with OTAs coming up and I’ll be there to see
and to be around Coach [defensive coordinator] Ryan Nielsen and be around the guys for a little bit
before I take off on my journey what got me to here. I really can’t switch up, can’t do anything different.
My wife has been so helpful with me through this process, because you never know, time is just different
every year. You want to keep doing the same thing at the same time, the same schedule, but you can’t
because life happens and things change. So, for me, it’s like, ‘Okay, what do I do next? How do I handle
it? How do I do this?’ My wife is just like, ‘Do the same thing, just extend it a couple of times. Don’t
stress about anything.’ Because I go train in Arizona and I feel like that process got me to perform at a
very high level that got me mentally, physically ready to compete and to perform. For me, I was like, ‘I
got to get out there, I got to do this.’ But not knowing what my contract situation is going to be like, so
my wife was really just like, ‘Josh, take care of your body, trust the process and just stay the grind. When
the time comes, the time will come when you need to go out there.’ So, for me, it was just having the
right mental headspace and staying focused and staying committed to what I do best and staying in
shape.”
(On if he felt antsy waiting for the deal to be finalized) “No, what I was told, you’ve got until July 15th or
July 12th or July 13th, until that day. So, I was like, ‘I got plenty of time.’ But also wanted to figure out what
my schedule was going to be like, how I was going to train and when I was going to train. I’m glad we got
the deal done here before these classes start and OTAs and minicamp or training camp mandatory. I’m
happy, hopefully the organization is happy, the fan base is happy. But I know myself and my family is
extremely happy and we’re ready to move on.”
(On if he will be at OTAs this offseason) “I will be for the first couple of weeks. That’s why I was saying,
figure out what I’m going to do and I’ve had this plan. I’m just going to stick to it. I’m going to be here for
the first couple of weeks to get in touch with the coaches, to know what the scheme is about, to get
those basic installs. Then, okay, this is what we’re doing, this is what they expect from me, this is what
they want from me. So now, when I go train, I can do what I need to do.”
(On how it feels to be a Jaguar long-term) “Man, first of all, I want to thank God first and foremost.
Believing in Him and trusting Him. I got my babies in the back, if y’all hear crying in the back, it’s okay. I’m
not ashamed, those are my babies and I love them and they can do what they need to do because
they’re babies. I love them. But first and foremost, I want to thank God for blessing me with the talent
and blessing me with the dedication and the mindset and putting people in my circle to help lift me up
when I wasn’t feeling up to the task. I’m blessed, I’m humbled. Just too many words in my head are
going on that I want to say, but I can’t really express it right now. With due time, I will express how I
really feel. I want to cry because I’m so happy, I remember going back to my college days and figuring out
if I want to go back to school or not. I remember talking to Coach Stoops [Kentucky Head Coach Mark
Stoops] at the time, and this is the first time I heard generational wealth. Not knowing what that word
meant, not knowing the value of it, to knowing I just had my son and I wanted to be with my girlfriend at
the time, my wife now, for the rest of our lives, and just knowing what that really meant. I took a bet on
myself, a gamble on myself, and it paid out. I became a first-round draft pick, seventh overall. I’m
fortunate to come here and then see the things through. Now knowing it’s not the first contract, it’s the
second contract, and knowing that I reached that point. I maximized on being patient, staying humble,
staying on the grind and staying dedicated to what I do. I’m very emotional right now, but the job is not
done yet. That’s what I want to tell the fanbase. I’m extremely blessed and honored to get this paycheck
and to get these checks, but I still set goals for myself. Defensive Player of the Year is my next goal,
winning the Super Bowl, being the MVP of it. I told you I’m a legacy guy. I know I’m rambling; I’m going
to ramble. I’m a legacy guy, like I told myself for a long time. When I look back on my legacy, I look at my
family. My sister has won a professional championship, so she’s up on me. I think about this all the time.
I know I’m super competitive. I got to win a Super Bowl and be the MVP and I can be up one, I’m not
going to stop until I get that. That’s motivating me, that’s bigger than money. For me, if I can do that and
bring the first win to Jacksonville, and be MVP, that’s my goal. I’m not stopping until I get there.”
(On what he has to do to live up to the expectations) “I mean, like I said, doing what I do that got me
here in the first place and yes, OTAs, for me, I can’t speak for everybody, it’s the value of that individual
time I have that can maximize my value and come back with a purpose and come back physically in
shape and mentally in shape that I can go and perform at a very high level. It worked for me. So, for me,
why not do what got me there in the first place? I know probably, ‘Oh, he’s not voluntary, he’s not here.’
My teammates know I love them. They know I’d do anything for them, they know I’m one phone call
away. My sons are playing sports on the weekends, I’ll fly back every week to see them. The dedication
to not only myself and my craft is very important, but my family and my relationships are also very
important as well. If I can value, like my wife told me, staying to the grind and staying focused, doing
what got me there, I believe I’m the best defensive player in the National Football League. If I can show it
last year and I can keep proving it and doing what got me there, if I can stay confident and stay healthy,
we keep getting better. Travon [OLB Travon Walker] called me and he said he had the day off but he went
to go workout because that motivated him, seeing what I got motivated him. To have a guy like Travon
keep getting better and better each year, it’s going to make me want to have to get better because I got
to be the best player on this team. I’m always competing with him, he knows that and then we added
[DL] Arik Armstead, who I’m in awe about. I’m excited for him, he’s going to be a great asset to this team.
Can’t wait to work with him, can’t wait to rush with him and against him to get to the quarterback. It’s
going to push me to have that sense of urgency and I’m excited for that.”
(On what the dynamic with DL Arik Armstead, OLB Travon Walker and DL Roy Robertson-Harris could be)
“First and foremost, you’ve got to see how the lineup is going to be. I think that’s important. You brought
him here to play a lot, you just resigned me to play a lot, Travon is just coming off a 10-sack season who
is only progressing, we have Roy, we have D-Ham [DT DaVon Hamilton], we have Adam [DL Adam
Gotsis], we just signed Jeremiah [DL Jeremiah Ledbetter] back. You see the tools and the pieces that we
have and so it’s just, first of all, how are we going to rotate that? How are we going to do that? What are
we asking everybody to do? Then, going out there, once we have that front of, ‘This is where we’re
looking at.’ I know Coach Nielsen [defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen] is a defensive line guy, if you want
your best player to rotate inside, I’ve shown that I can play three-tech on a guard. Everybody is good in
the National Football League, but you know what I mean. Travon can go, Arik can go inside and outside,
Roy had some outside stuff. So, we can rotate and see where everybody best fits, I think that’s important
and I think that’s priority number one. But also, obviously, rushing with the guys and knowing what
everybody is capable of is very exciting.”
(On when he got the call his contract was finalized) “Obviously, I was in every part of the negotiating
stages of this. I was kind of up to date with everything and knowing that we were getting closer and
closer. Little knickknacks that we wanted to get, they wanted to get, so just negotiating that part. But it
got real when it was like, we’re there. We’re happy. We’re never satisfied, but we’re very happy with
what we have in front of us. I went through a lot of emotions, like I said, I’m very emotional right now,
I’m kind of doing a good job of keeping my composure. I know once I start talking about my wife, you
don’t know how much she’s helped me throughout my career, but I can’t get to that point right now. But
it’s very real, like you said, how do you hold up to the expectations? For me, it’s to get back in that lab.
Figure it out and get back to doing what I do, training with a purpose, training with a mindset of that I
am best and we’ve got a big target on our back. We’ve always have, especially now, you look at our
division and it’s gotten a lot more competitive, which I love, which brings a lot more national media to
our division. When you look at every team, every team has a primary quarterback. Now you look at the
receiving core, now you look at the offensive lines, you look at the running back rooms, everybody is
competing for the AFC South. I still believe we’re top dogs, and I’m going to believe that. In my mind, the
best defensive front is going to win these games and I feel like we have a great opportunity to be the
best defensive front in our division which is going to lead us on to bigger and better things. I’m excited to
get to work, I’m excited to be around these guys again and know that this part is done and over with.
Now, it’s to how can we win a Super Bowl and how can we compete? I’m ready to compete.”
(On what the contract and commitment mean to him and his family) “It’s huge. We talk big about
legacies and roots, not to toot my horn, but everywhere that I went, I left an impact. It started back in
high school, just living and starting off really slow in high school. Then progressing to being a two-star
recruit, to feeling like I had a lot of doubters on my back. Then, going to my high school my senior year,
leading the state in sacks my first year playing defense, knowing that I’m capable of playing at a very high
level, going into college as a two-star recruit like I said. Then, building my way up to becoming the
seventh pick in the draft, winning every national defensive player award to always proving myself wrong.
Then to now, it’s home when I go back to Lexington. Leaving that legacy there that will never be
forgotten. Then, coming here to Jacksonville, 2017 was a year that they almost went to the Super Bowl.
Almost doesn’t count. They had a great team, Sacksonville. Great defense and offense that was
progressing. Then, you move on to ’18, they didn’t have success. I came in ’19 and we went 6-10, I told
myself we can’t worse than this. Not understanding NFL, then winning three games the next two years.
Then, Coach Pederson [Head Coach Doug Pederson] comes in, we go to the playoffs. It’s real, these are
raw emotions that I’m giving you guys and I’m honest. What can I do to leave an impact? Last year was
me figuring everything out. I know everybody talks about, ‘Oh, it was a contract year, he was extra
motivated.’ For me, it was figuring out life. When you get thrown all this money, you build a family at a
very young age. Nobody teaches you or gives you a guidebook and says, ‘This is life. This is what you
want to do, this is how you handle things. When the kids get old enough, you’ve got to take them to this
school, you’ve got to pay these bills. You’ve got to do taxes.’ It becomes a lot and the faster you can
manage and handle these so you can just focus on football the better. I feel like my wife and I, we’ve
grown, we’ve grown so much over these years and we thank each other every day that we didn’t stay
where we were whatever year in the past because we still need to grow today. This is something that we
need to build, not only for us but for our kids. It’s just very special to leave a legacy, again, let me get
back to that. Last year, breaking the single-season sack record wasn’t because it was a contract year.
Thankfully, it was a contract year, but if was two or three years ago, I would’ve done it. It’s just figuring
everything out and putting the pieces together. Building that confidence back up that I feel like I lost
because I didn’t live up to expectations that I know I could. It was investing in here, investing to your
body, a little bit more than what you usually do and being okay with the results that come with it. For me
it’s, ‘Oh, that worked for me. Let me do it again.’ I found out what works for me, I found out my plan, I
found out my schedule. Again, I thank God every morning and every night and before I eat. I am
thankful, I am a humble servant under Him. My kids will be, my wife is, my whole family is. I can’t thank
God anymore.”
(On how supportive Jaguars fans have been throughout the process) “Man, it’s kind of hard to stay off of
social media, but I try to do my best. I’m not going to say I didn’t read a lot of comments or concerns
about what we were doing. It’s definitely hard, negotiating there’s ups and downs. It’s, ‘Dang, they didn’t
feel like this? Oh! We’re going in the right direction!’ It was a bit of an emotional rollercoaster and then
seeing the fans really wanted me back, they knew what type of player I was on and off the field. Just
having that local support behind me I think helped. Shoutout to all of Duval, they know I love them. They
know, even when I remember sitting in one of the games and somebody saying, ‘Josh, you going to do
something?’ A couple of years ago, I won’t let that hold me back. I’ll use that for motivation and it got
me where I am today. So, thank you to whoever that was.”
(On what it means for the team to believe in him) “It’s special. This is my legacy, this is something that I
built, this is something that I work every day for. It’s something I’m honored to be apart of. I told myself
when I got drafted at two instances, I told myself at Kentucky to Coach Stoops [Kentucky Head Coach
Mark Stoops], I want to be the best player you ever coached. I remember telling him my rookie year,
two-star recruit, didn’t know what a two-point stance was, didn’t know what a field and boundary was,
but I knew what I wanted. I can argue that question with him, I think I am but that’s his opinion. Then
coming here and getting drafted, I wanted to be the best defensive player to ever come out of
Jacksonville history. I got five more years to keep stacking and stacking and stacking. I’m excited about
that, I’m excited for it and whoever comes to try to get my record, it’s going to be a very tall task and I’m
going to make it very hard for them. I’m extremely blessed, I know I’m 10 sacks away from leading
franchise history in total sacks I think, and Tony Brackens who has become a big mentor of mine
throughout these years, just to know I’m right on his heels is a blessing. I passed Calais’ [Campbell] who
was another mentor of mine coming in, so knowing that I did that was huge and now it’s Tony. I’m going
to get emotional again, but I’m going to save that for my wife and I.”
JACKSONVILLE – The Jacksonville Jaguars have re-signed OLB Josh Allen, the team announced today.
“We are pleased to announce the signing of Josh Allen to a five-year contract,” said Jaguars General Manager Trent Baalke. “Josh is a true pro who has developed into one of the top producing defensive players at his position in the NFL and a cornerstone of our defense. He is a leader on and off the field, and we are excited for Josh and his family, as well as our fanbase.”
“I’m grateful to the Jaguars organization for putting their faith in me once again. Five years ago, as a first-round pick and again today, they’ve shown that they believe in my talent and value my contributions to this team. I’m prepared to make good on their investment and do whatever it takes to bring a championship to Jacksonville. Thank you to my wife, Kaitlyn, and my kids Wesley, Julian and Vanessa for supporting me on this journey. It’s always been my goal to leave a legacy wherever I go, and I’m proud that work continues in Duval.”
Allen was originally drafted by Jacksonville in the first round (7th overall) in the 2019 NFL Draft. In his first season, Allen set the single-season sack record for a rookie in franchise history after he recorded 10.5 sacks in 16 games. On his way to a Pro Bowl nod, he added 44 total tackles (31 solo), 23 QB hits and two forced fumbles to his rookie campaign in 2019. In 2023, Allen posted 66 tackles (43 solo), 17.5 sacks, 33 quarterback hits, two forced fumbles and one interception in 17 games (17 starts). Allen’s 17.5 sacks broke the single-season franchise record, previously set by DL Calais Campbell in 2017 (14.5). He became the second player since 1982 to record at least 2.5 sacks in four different games in a season, joining Pro Football Hall of Fame member Lawrence Taylor. His 17.5 sacks finished tied for second in the NFL. The 2023 season marked Allen’s second Pro Bowl season of his career.
The Montclair, N.J. native has produced 252 total tackles (163 solo), 103 QB hits, 53 tackles for loss, 45.0 sacks in 74 games played (60 starts) in his five-year career. Allen is one of six players in the AFC to have at least 45.0 sacks since he entered the league in 2019. His 45.0 sacks rank second in franchise history behind Tony Brackens.
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