The AFC East, an already exciting division, got even more interesting this offseason when quarterback Aaron Rodgers joined the New York Jets. This means the Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots and Buffalo Bills all have to face the future Hall of Famer twice a year in the regular season.
Bills quarterback Josh Allen and Rodgers have spent some time together off the field, at No. 12's celebrity flag-football game and at AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and soon they will see each other at least twice on the field.
At 27, Allen is 12 years younger than his newest divisional rival, meaning he has spent more time watching Rodgers while growing up than he has on the other side of the sideline. When Rodgers was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in 2005, Allen was one month away from his ninth birthday. Allen joined the league in 2018, 13 years after Rodgers' rookie season took place.
Allen said he has been a fan of Rodgers since he was young and now that he has gotten to know the veteran on a more personal level, he only has more good things to say.
"I've gotten to know Aaron a little bit over the years, and I would consider us very close," Allen said (via The Ringer). "I wouldn't say we text on the regular. I don't really call him, I FaceTime him. He usually answers, which is a big plus. I know he doesn't answer a lot of people."
Rodgers was not thrilled that his former team did not FaceTime him this offseason, when his future in Green Bay was very up in the air. Allen gave some advice to anyone looking to get in contact with Rodgers, saying, "You just gotta FaceTime him, he'll answer."
The Super Bowl champion's first game in a Jets uniform will come against Allen and Co. in Week 1 on "Monday Night Football." The Bills will host the second regular-season meeting on Nov. 19.
"I've just been such a fan of his since I was a little kid," Allen said. "Having his jerseys and trying to emulate what he does on the football field. He's such a special player. I think he's the most gifted thrower of the football all time. Going up against him twice a year, it's going to be a battle."
As they have been for the last few seasons, the Bills are once again one of the Super Bowl favorites, hoping to make it to their first championship game in the Allen era. Rodgers and the improving Jets on the schedule twice a year only makes things more difficult for Buffalo.
"There's a lot of great quarterbacks in the AFC right now," Allen said. "These games are going to be dogfights, and it's not about how you win them, it's about if you win them. That's all we're trying to do, we're trying to score one more point than our opponent."
While he acknowledges that the other quarterbacks present a challenge, Allen says he does not want too much focus on who is leading opposing offenses.
"As a quarterback, I am not really looking at who's on the other side of that football. I don't play them. I play their defense and their defensive coordinator. But there [are] certain things that will influence play-calling and decision-making based on who is over there. We don't want to give the ball back to them. We don't want to give them short fields."
The top quarterbacks have met twice before this season, once in 2018, ending with a Packers shutout and a Bills win in 2022.
