The Buffalo Bills needed a new backup quarterback for Josh Allen. So they went back to an old Allen.
Buffalo is signing former backup quarterback Kyle Allen to a two-year, $4.1 million contract worth up to $6.1 million, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
The move comes after Mitchell Trubisky, the Bills’ backup the past two seasons, agreed to a two-year deal with the Tennessee Titans. Trubisky will reunite with offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. Schefter reported Allen’s deal is slightly smaller than Trubisky’s reported two-year, $5.25 million contract with Tennessee.
Allen gives Buffalo a familiar replacement behind starter Josh Allen. He previously served as the Bills’ backup in 2023, appearing in seven games but not attempting a pass as Josh Allen again handled virtually every meaningful snap.
The Bills may have lost Trubisky, but they didn’t lose the formula: find a veteran backup Josh Allen knows and trusts. Kyle Allen and Josh Allen are close friends, and Buffalo has consistently kept backup quarterbacks with personal ties to its franchise quarterback, from Trubisky to Shane Buechele and now back to Kyle Allen.
The two Allens trained for the draft together and entered the NFL together in 2018. They reunite in the offseasons in California to hang out. Josh Allen and his now-wife Hailee Steinfeld attended Kyle Allen’s wedding in Mexico in June 2024 and the Allens posed in social media photos together as guests as wide receiver Christian Kirk’s wedding in April 2024.
Kyle Allen, 30, spent last season with the Detroit Lions after previous stops with the Panthers, Washington, Texans, Bills and Steelers. Across 34 NFL games and 19 starts, he has completied 62.5% of his passes and thrown for 4,753 yards, 26 touchdowns and 21 interceptions. He has a 7-12 record as a starting quarterback.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Bills bring back Josh Allen’s close friend as backup quarterback
Reporting by Ryan Miller, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
