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Josh Allen laughed off questions about his left hand injury. Because he wore a glove for extra protection on Tuesday, he was not limited in practice and dismissed any concerns when asked about it.
Allen will play against the Miami Dolphins on Thursday night, four days after he was injured throwing for two touchdowns and running for two more in the Buffalo Bills’ season-opening win.
So there is no reason to worry, right?
Probably not, say experienced NFL quarterbacks who have played despite side-hand injuries.
But Allen and the Bills have a lot to consider.
“The hands are special,” Jake Plummer said. “Very small details that we don’t think about. For us, it’s muscle memory, but when you go into detail for an article, you think, ‘Wow! I’ve never seen it like that before!’ It’s always fun for fans to learn more about the intricacies.”
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Plummer was one of four quarterbacks familiar with injuries The athlete about Allen’s situation. All are right-handed and have suffered some injuries to their throwing hands, but we focused on the left side.
Hall of Famer Warren Moon dislocated his ring finger and pinky finger. New Orleans Saints legend Archie Manning played his final season at Ole Miss with a broken left forearm held together by a plate and four screws. Super Bowl MVP Phil Simms played with a broken hand but declined to say when it happened because he didn’t want to upset the New York Giants organization or his former coach. Plummer played with a torn ulnar collateral ligament for the Arizona Cardinals.
Together with Bills center Connor McGovern, they explained the details involved.
What potential issues were addressed in practice for the Bills this week?
Plumber: “Your weak hand is still important because you need it to stop the ball at the snap, secure the ball when you drop back, and pass the ball.”
Moon: “Ball security is the most important thing for coaches. You have to be extra careful with the ball. You have to feel comfortable with what you’re doing and make sure there’s no pain so you can even play.”
How much strain can a fresh hand injury put on a quarterback during a game?
Occupation: “In the first game, I thought a little more about the quarterback role than usual because I wanted to take care of the ball. But in the last two games, I’ve gotten used to it.”
Moon: “He doesn’t want to get another injury either. You admire him for trying to get into the end zone, but sometimes you don’t like the end result because it jeopardizes the game next week.”
Plumber: “Josh Allen is a very instinctive player. He won’t think about it. Everyone else will talk about it. He’ll play along.”
Occupation: “The biggest problems were making sure I got the snap and the handing.”
Simms: “Will it affect him throwing the football? Probably not. But it will make him think when he runs.”
What does Allen need to consider when planning descents or climbing?
Plumber: “Hopefully he doesn’t land on it or get into a position where he makes it worse, but he will. You put your hand down to brace yourself. People are going to hit it.”
Occupation: “I absolutely had to run with the ball under my right arm.”
Moon: “You have to hold it with your right hand. You must never hold it with your injured hand. As long as you can hold it with your index finger over the top of the ball, you’re pretty good – unless you have an injured thumb.”
Plumber: “He just has to be smart. Be careful when you go down. Don’t slide on your left cheek, slide on your right.”
Moon: “He needs to be a lot more careful when running the ball the way he does and be more careful not to hit the ground or go out of bounds rather than jumping over someone. I don’t think he can play with the reckless abandon he’s used to.”
Shotgun snaps are easier, but under offensive coordinator Joe Brady, Allen took a direct snap on 29.6 percent of his plays last year. On Sunday against the Cardinals, 41.4 percent of the Bills’ snaps were direct. What needs to happen?
Plumber: “He has to have the functionality under control. The snap is the most important play in the game.”
McGovern: “I really have to make sure I hit the top hand and don’t miss the target. I have to make sure my left hand is protected.”
Simms: “The left hand is only there to grasp the ball on a direct snap.”
Plumber: “Just keep your left hand out of the way so it doesn’t get caught. The center snaps it into the right hand. The snaps have to stay the same whether injured or not.”
Simms: “The other thing is they can run their entire offense pretty much from the shotgun. They can make a few adjustments to the lineup if his hand is that bad.”
The Bills may adjust their use of direct snaps to account for Josh Allen’s injured left hand. (Gregory Fisher / Imagn Images)
What can the center do to make life easier for Allen’s injured left hand?
McGovern: “If I take something off the direct snap, I might be a little slower in my process. We’re playing away, so we could be in a silent count. Any delay could cause the tackles to jump offsides. There are so many little things.”
Plumber: “There’s no change at all. It has to stay exactly as it is. (McGovern) has to think, ‘Nah, I’m going to grab the thing. It’s your job to figure out how to get the ball.'”
McGovern: “Shotgun snaps are still straightforward. But I can’t slow down my throw, that’s the problem. I try not to shoot the ball back, but I can’t float it or make him reach for it. You can’t change the speed because that can mess up the timing of the move or the handoff or the timing of the running back. It might take two-tenths of a second longer to throw the ball, but in football that’s an eternity.”
What concerns are there regarding the handover?
Simms: “The worst part was that on handoffs to the right, the running back could grab your left hand and pull on it. Oh my God, that hurt.”
Moon: “When I passed the ball to the right, I had both hands on the ball until shortly before the ball was handed off to the running back, instead of just one hand. We had to practice that over and over again all week so that he felt comfortable with it.”
Occupation: “I couldn’t pass the ball with my left hand. I passed it with my right hand, which was difficult. I had to make sure I had a good grip on the ball because I was hitting the running back in the stomach with the back of my hand, not the palm of my hand.”
Plumber: “When you get your elbow down low, you lose some reach. You lose some consistency. It’s a new thing when you hand the ball off with a hand injury, but they get creative. They improvise.”
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How important is it to continue playing after a four-day break?
Simms: “I’m sure it’s going to hurt like hell.”
Plumber: “This is football. It’s injury season. You play the game and then you have to deal with injuries.”
Moon: “The short week hurts because it takes so long to heal and reduce any pain or swelling, and because you have to get used to the tape work you want to use and how many reps your back can handle with a new handoff style.”
Plumber: “In fantasy, betting and all that gambling, every injury you can imagine is known, but I’ve played through some injuries that nobody knew about. Josh Allen isn’t going to bow to an injured thumb or wrist. It might even make him better.”
Thunderstorms are possible in Miami Gardens Thursday night. How important is your non-throwing hand in weather like this?
Moon: “I’ve had some fumble snaps during this time, especially when the weather was wet or snowy. It’s harder to handle the football. A wet ball is harder to handle when you have two healthy hands and ten healthy fingers.”
Simms: “Rain isn’t as important as it used to be because the soccer balls are so good you can still handle them pretty well. Anyone can throw the balls they use now.”
Moon: “But I think you’re always going to be aware of it, especially in a bad weather game. You have to handle the football mechanically and sometimes you can feel a little shaky.”
Simms: “When you play on turf, you can take the hardest loss you’ve ever had as a quarterback in your life and still think, ‘Damn, I feel pretty good!’ The morning after you play on turf, even with what they have now, you feel like you’ve been in a car accident. There’s nothing better than playing on turf.”
What impact do you think Allen’s hand injury will have on Thursday night?
Plumber: “He’s a damn good football player. He’s unbelievable, he runs down idiots and throws balls 30 yards a minute.”
Simms: “If Josh Allen loses a little bit of skill and the injury affects him a little bit here and there, my answer would be, ‘So what.’ He can afford to lose a little bit and get away with it. Unless it’s a bad fracture, I can’t imagine it’s going to be a problem for him.”
Occupation: “Josh will handle it. He’s a warrior.”
(Top photo of Josh Allen: Gregory Fisher / Imagn Images)
