Josh Allen gives Bills a scare after apparent shoulder injury on big hit

Josh Allen appeared to injure his arm on a third-down play.

Bufallo Bills quarterback Josh Allen left their game with the Las Vegas Raiders in the second quarter after suffering an apparent shoulder injury before returning prior to the end of the half.

Allen landed awkwardly on his right arm as he scrambled to his left on a desperate attempt to convert a third down with under five minutes remaining in the second quarter. The Bills gained eight yards on the play and then kicked a field goal to extend their lead to 17-6.

In obvious pain, Allen left for the locker room before returning to the sideline.

After warming up, he then came out on to the field to take a knee before halftime, with the Raiders having cut the Bills’ advantage to 17-13 with a Derek Carr touchdown throw to Jason Witten.

Allen avoiding serious injury spared the Bills from having to turn to backup Matt Barkley to keep their AFC East hopes intact. An extended absence for Allen would have completely changed the complexion of both the division and the conference.

Yet the incident will only serve to increase concerns about Allen’s cavalier style of play. Allen’s improvisational ability and willingness to seemingly try almost anything to make positive plays happen has seen him develop into one of the most entertaining quarterbacks to watch in the NFL.

However, it also consistently puts him in harm’s way as he risks taking heavy hits from defenders in the open field on a consistent basis.

The unbeaten Bills have succeeded to a large degree in turning Allen into more of a pocket passer with the spectacular results putting him in the early conversation for the MVP award. If the Bills are to contend for a deep postseason run, they need their franchise quarterback to do more to avoid taking unnecessary risks.