Josh Allen’s phenomenal season continues to impress as the Buffalo Bills charge toward the playoffs, and the potential league MVP has credited some of that success to his relationship.
So have his teammates.
Bills left tackle Dion Dawkins raved about Allen’s relationship with actress and singer Hailee Steinfeld just weeks after the couple got engaged. Dawkins told reporters that he believes Steinfeld has had a massive influence on Allen’s performance – which in turn has meant well for the Bills.
"Josh is having fun, we’re having fun watching him," he said Wednesday.
"I don’t want to keep bringing energy to it, but I’m telling you, when you have a strong female behind you and when you’re in the right mental space of going home and everything is peaceful and going to your cellphone and seeing a heart in your phone and it just makes you bubble – there’s something about it."
Allen seemingly agreed with that notion, telling The Associated Press that she’s been "a huge part" of what’s been working for him this season.
"The morale, the support. When I get home, she’s my biggest fan, my biggest supporter. She’s just the best," he gushed.
Allen proposed to Steinfeld during the Bills’ bye week and the couple have been linked since early 2023. But her positive influence isn’t just a figment of the Bills’ imagination.
Since the proposal, Allen has a combined 14 touchdowns, including seven passing, six rushing and even one receiving. His 37 touchdowns overall lead the NFL in a three-way tie with Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow.
The Bills are also coming off back-to-back high scoring games, including a 48-42 win over the Detroit Lions.
Josh Allen added to his MVP resume on Sunday as he accounted for four touchdowns in the Buffalo Bills’ 48-42 win over the Detroit Lions on the road.
The Bills moved to 11-3 on the season, while the Lions are now 12-2.
Allen, the MVP frontrunner in Vegas, threw for 362 yards on 23-of-34 passing with two passing touchdowns. But the first two scores for Buffalo in this one came on the ground for Allen, who had 11 carries for 68 yards.
Buffalo got off to a 14-0 start at a tough Ford Field as Allen orchestrated back-to-back touchdown drives in which he scored from one yard out and four yards out, respectively.
Jared Goff and the Lions, though, are one of the best offenses in the league, and you knew they were going to respond somehow.
On the Lions’ third drive, Goff found Tim Patrick after scrambling out of the pocket, and he used his entire wingspan to get the ball across the goal line to make it a 14-7 game.
But James Cook, who had two touchdowns and 105 yards rushing on 14 carries, found the end zone for the first time on the ensuing drive to maintain the gap.
It’s what the Bills did all game long: maintaining the lead despite how many times the Lions scored.
And they got in six times as Goff threw for a whopping 494 yards and five touchdowns on 38-of-59 passing.
Amon-Ra St. Brown, his trusty target, had 14 catches to account for 193 of those yards with a score on a 66-yard catch-and-run, and Jahmyr Gibbs tallied one on the ground and one through the air.
Goff even threw a touchdown to offensive lineman Dan Skipper from nine yards out as offensive coordinator Ben Johnson pulled out all the stops to get back into the game.
But Allen and the Bills would reciprocate the scores, with Ray Davis and Khalil Shakir accounting for Allen’s passing touchdowns on the day.
Ty Johnson, Cook’s backup, was also the leading receiver for Buffalo with 114 yards on five catches.
For the Lions, Sam LaPorta had 111 yards on seven catches and Gibbs finished with 83 yards.
A slew of scoring came between the Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium on Sunday, but it was the home team, led by the combination of Matthew Stafford and Puka Nacua, that came away victorious.
It was a massive win for the Rams, as they’re now 7-6 in a tight NFC West race after the 44-42 win. Meanwhile, the Bills, now 10-3, hurt their chances at the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC.
The most points in an NFL game all season came from these two high-octane offenses, and it began immediately on the opening drives for both of those teams.
Stafford and the Rams went 12 plays and 70 yards when Kyren Williams rushed in from three yards out to start the scoring.
Then Josh Allen, who was phenomenal despite the loss, responded with a nine-play drive that went 70 yards as he ultimately snuck his way into the end zone from one yard out to make it 7-7.
Los Angeles, though, created a gap with a perfectly executed special teams play that ultimately helped the victory. After a field goal made it 10-7 in favor of the Rams, the defense forced the Bills to punt, but that ball never made it in the air as it was blocked and Hunter Long recovered the ball for the scoop-and-score touchdown.
At 17-7, the Rams never trailed again in this game. Allen tried his best to keep scoring, but Stafford was always coming right back.
And a lot of that had to do with Nacua, who had a game-high 162 yards on 12 receptions with a touchdown both on the ground and through the air.
There was also Cooper Kupp accounting for 92 of Stafford’s 320 yards and his second passing touchdown of the game.
In the fourth quarter, Allen was pulling out all the stops to try to win the game, and he managed to lead three scoring drives, including one with a minute left to play.
However, a failed quarterback sneak resulted in Bills head coach Sean McDermott using the first of three timeouts for the half, which was crucial because it meant an onside kick had to be performed instead of kicking it deep and giving the defense a chance to make stops.
The onside kick from Tyler Bass was recovered by Ronnie Rivers, and the Rams held on for the victory.
Looking more into the box score, there wasn’t much else Allen could’ve done. He scored three times on the ground while leading the Bills with 82 rushing yards on 10 carries, while going 22-for-37 through the air for 342 yards with three passing scores.
Khalil Shakir was once again his top target with 106 yards on five catches, including a 51-yard catch-and-run that went for six points. Amari Cooper also had 95 yards on six catches, while Mack Hollins and Ty Johnson collected touchdowns through the air.
For the Rams, Williams would find the end zone twice on the ground and lead the team with 87 rushing yards on 29 carries.
Josh Allen made every play a quarterback could make and more.
Fresh off his engagement to pop star Hailee Steinfeld, Allen had to deal with the driving lake-effect snow that plagued the Buffalo area over the holiday weekend and into Sunday night against the San Francisco 49ers.
Allen definitely had more pep in his step as the Bills took down the 49ers, 35-10. Buffalo also clinched the AFC East division for the fifth straight season.
The superstar quarterback got into the scoring column with a 7-yard pass to wide receiver Mack Hollins before halftime. Buffalo had a 21-3 lead going into the locker room but were far from finished.
Allen was credited for a receiving touchdown in the third quarter after Amari Cooper lateralled the pass from Allen back to the quarter, who then ran in for a score. Allen officially had zero catches but seven receiving yards and a receiving touchdown.
To cap off the night, Allen ran for an 8-yard score in the fourth quarter to put the game completely out of reach. Mitchell Trubisky took over from there.
Allen became the first NFL quarterback to throw for a touchdown, run for a touchdown and catch a touchdown in a single game since the merger, the team said.
He had 148 passing yards on 13 completions as well has 18 rushing yards.
Bills running backs James Cook and Ray Davis also were able to get on the board. Cook had a 65-yard touchdown run while Davis had a 5-yard touchdown scamper. Cook had 107 rushing yards on the night and Davis had 59.
The 49ers had no answer to the Bills’ offense the entire night. Players didn’t appear to get any type of feel for the snowy conditions as they were slipping and sliding across the surface.
San Francisco’s best hope was to get Christian McCaffrey every possible opportunity. But the running back suffered a knee injury in the first half and never returned.
Brock Purdy was under 100 yards passing. He was 11-of-18 with 94 passing yards. He was sacked twice. Isaac Guerendo scored San Francisco’s lone touchdown.
Buffalo is now on a seven-game winning streak and have 10 wins on the season.
San Francisco fell to 5-7 and it looked like their season was about to slip away.
The "True Grit" star, 28, and the Buffalo Bills quarterback, 28, both shared a photo on social media of the moment Allen got down on one knee to propose.
The image, which showed them framed in an arch of pink roses and surrounded by candles, was captioned with two infinity symbols and the date "11•22•24."
While the pair have a way to go to match the Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce hype, their engagement led to an outpouring of well-wishes from friends and fans.
Following the announcement, here's a complete timeline of their relationship.
May 2023: Steinfeld and Allen are spotted together for the first time.
Shortly after it was rumored that Allen had broken up with his then-girlfriend, social media influencer Brittany Williams, the quarterback was spotted out with Steinfeld.
In paparazzi photos published by the New York Post, Allen and Steinfeld were seen out together in New York City.
August 2023: Allen addressed speculation about their relationship on a podcast.
Appearing on the "Pardon My Take" podcast, Allen was asked if he'd seen headlines about him "making out with his girlfriend."
Responding to the jibe, Allen said: "The fact that anybody cares about that still blows my mind."
He added that photographers who try to take photos of the pair when they're together give him a "gross feeling," recalling one specific incident where he spotted a photographer hiding "on a boat" in an attempt to capture a private date.
"[I was] like, 'What is wrong with people,'" the athlete said, adding that there was "no privacy" during the trip.
October 2023: Steinfeld is seen supporting Allen at a Bills game in London.
"The Dickinson" star was captured on cameras at London's Tottenham Hotspur Stadium supporting Allen as the Buffalo Bills took on the Jacksonville Jaguars in October 2023.
The actor was sat beside race car driver Daniel Ricciardo, who is one of Allen's close friends, according to Us Weekly.
January 2024: Steinfeld evades questions about the NFL star while attending the Golden Globes.
Hailee Steinfeld at the 81st Annual Golden Globe Awards.
Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images
While on the red carpet before the award ceremony, Steinfeld avoided going into detail about her relationship with Allen.
According to People, in a since-deleted TikTok video, a reporter asked Steinfeld how she was feeling about the night while holding up a Bills jersey — seemingly in reference to the fact that Allen was playing a game against the Miami Dolphins that weekend.
Steinfeld responded, "real good," and began walking away before turning around and adding that the shirt had the "wrong number."
Elsewhere on the carpet, the Oscar nominee addressed rumors she that was engaged, telling an E! News reporter that she was only wearing a ring because she thought it was "real cute."
Trying to get the actor to open up about her relationship, the reporter asked: "What is it about a sportsy man?"
"Listen, what isn't it about? Come on now," Steinfeld replied.
July 2024: The couple goes Instagram official.
Allen hard launched his relationship with Steinfeld with an Instagram post in July.
In a carousel of photos, captioned "Onward," Allen shared some glimpses into their romance, including a photo of the pair taken on a balcony overlooking the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
October 2024: Steinfeld opens up about her relationship with Allen in a newsletter.
In one installment sent in late October, she opened up about how she and Allen avoided a "bad omen" in their relationship.
She recalled how for Christmas, the couple got each other the same chef's knife in different colors because they loved to cook together.
"After we exchanged our knives lol, he told me there's an old wive's tale that if you gift your significant other a knife you have to pay for it, otherwise it signifies the severing of a relationship. So we exchanged quarters so we didn't have that bad omen," she wrote in the newsletter, per Sports Illustrated.
November 2024: The couple get engaged.
Allen and Steinfeld posted a joint photo of their romantic proposal to their Instagram followers in November.
Allen didn't mention the engagement during a news conference ahead of the Bills' next game.
However, when asked if he enjoyed his bye week, Allen gave a big smile, the Associated Press reported.
"Fantastic. It was great. Got some sun. Hung out with family. It was fantastic," he said.
December 2024: The couple shares details of the proposal, and Allen credits his success on the field to Steinfeld's support
In an issue of her Beau Society newsletter, Steinfeld reportedly introduced readers to Allen and held a "mini fiancé Q&A," in which the couple shared more details about the proposal.
"I said I couldn't wait any longer. I said I can't wait to start a family with you. I said your full name, and I asked you very nicely. I said please," Allen recalled.
"You were extremely surprised, you said yes, and that was all that mattered to me," he added. "And the sun was out."
Josh Allen was seen smiling prior to an NFL game against the San Francisco 49ers on December 1.
Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images
Speaking to The Associated Press, Allen said that his fiancée has been "a huge part" of why he's had such a stellar season with the Bills.
"The morale, the support. When I get home, she's my biggest fan, my biggest supporter. She's just the best," said Allen, who is one of the favorites to win the NFL MVP award.
Allen's teammate Dion Dawkins told reporters that he believes Steinfeld has had a big influence on Allen's performance.
"Josh is having fun, we're having fun watching him," he said, per Fox News.
He added: " When you have a strong female behind you and when you're in the right mental space of going home and everything is peaceful and going to your cellphone and seeing a heart in your phone and it just makes you bubble — there's something about it."
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen's recent engagement to actress Hailey Steinfeld hasn't been met with celebration by everyone.
Allen's ex-girlfriend, Instagram influencer Brittany Williams, has recently deleted a comment and a post from her account after news of Allen's engagement.
The comment was in response to a user who was asking whether the influencer hadn't found her "next athlete yet."
"Luckily my boyfriend owns a team and doesn't have to play for one," Williams wrote. "Don't have to be with another brain dead CTE athlete."
Williams later deleted the comment and posted a story in which she claimed her account was hacked.
"My accounts have been hacked several times tonight. Trying to get it resolved. If anyone has any tips please [let me know]," Williams wrote. That story was later deleted as well.
The current boyfriend of Williams is unknown.
The model previously opened up about her split from the NFL star in an interview on the "Martinis and Bikinis" podcast in February.
"I was with my ex-boyfriend for 10 years," she said. "I would say that coming into the dating world was very, very, very difficult for me at first, because I’m just like, I never thought I would be here again. But here I am. I am very happy now. The dating life in New York is absolutely crazy, but it’s so much fun. It was so entertaining."
Williams even went on to say that breaking up with Allen has led to her feeling "giddy."
"I’m giddy right now just talking about it because it’s so much fun. I’m having the ‘Sex and the City’ moment. . . . It is crazy out here on these streets, I’ll just say that. It’s hard, but it’s beautiful because it makes you realize everything you want and makes you not settle for anything more than that.
"For me, it’s been the most fun and exciting experience, and I’ve learned so much about myself. I’ve learned what I like and what I don’t like, and I’m not going to entertain anything other than someone that I think is actually meant for me or whatever it is."
Break-up rumors between Allen and Williams swirled starting in May 2023, when Williams unfollowed the quarterback on Instagram and appeared to celebrate her birthday without him. Additionally, any mention of Buffalo was removed from her account.
Things got a bit more interesting when the two went to the Kentucky Derby, but without each other. One of Williams’ friends had an eyebrow-raising post on her Instagram Stories.
"Now accepting husband applications @brittwilll," the post read.
Meanwhile, Allen and Steinfeld were first linked in the spring of 2023 when they were photographed dining together in New York City. They have become one of the NFL's most private power couples, compared to the likes of Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift.
Allen and Steinfeld are rarely seen together publicly. But now they are set to tie the knot.
Meanwhile, Williams will look to improve the security on her Instagram account for her 142K followers.
Allen knelt down on a knee surrounded by candles and a flower arch.
The couple posted the engagement to their Instagram accounts in a joint post, captioning it with the date they got engaged sandwiched between two infinity emojis.
Allen's teammate, Dion Dawkins, said earlier this year the quarterback was "in love" with the "Starving" singer. The two have been dating since May 2023.
Allen's Bills are 9-2 this season, and he is again in the MVP race. He has completed 64% of his passes for 2,543 yards and 18 touchdowns.
Before the bye week — and engagement — the Bills handed the Kansas City Chiefs their first loss of the season.
Allen will be back on the field Sunday in Buffalo against the defending NFC champion San Francisco 49ers, and a huge winter storm is expected to slam the area.
