Josh Allen shut down accusations of favoritism after NFL fans went into meltdown over the Buffalo Bills quarterback’s interaction with a referee Sunday.
The Bills comfortably cruised into the divisional round of the NFL playoffs with a 31-7 Wild-Card win over the Denver Broncos at Highmark Stadium.
However, Allen stirred controversy during the Bills’ playoff opener when he was caught in conversation with referee Bill Vinovich on the sidelines.
During the game, there appeared to be a missed defensive pᴀss interference call on Broncos’ cornerback Patrick Surtain II.
Allen was visibly frustrated with the missed call and shortly after the CBS broadcast showed Vinovich approaching the Bills bench and have a word with the signal caller.
The moment caught the attention of many NFL fans, who grew suspicious of what they interpreted to be a friendly interaction.
Bill Vinovich and Josh Allen having a chat pic.twitter.com/2LFbSXo6ua
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) January 12, 2025
NFL referee Bill Vinovich was caught talking to Buffalo Bills’ Josh Allen on the sidelines
The quarterback later shared the official’s three-word message from the interaction
However, when asked about the conversation after the game, Allen was quick to clarify that he was in fact on the receiving end of a berating.
‘I wasn’t happy with what was going on and I was yelling a little bit, and he said, “Don’t be yelling.” So my bad. Sorry,’ Allen told reporters.
But the interaction had already triggered a storm on social media with some users claiming it had been the referee apologizing to Allen, not the other way round.
‘I have never seen a referee huddle with a QB after a blatant missed call during a game. And so friendly! Never,’ ESPN reporter Don Van Natta Jr. wrote.
‘I have never seen something like this. The ref is all the way to the Bills bench to apologize to Josh Allen,’ Broncos beat reporter Zac Stevens added.
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Meanwhile, Barstool’s Jack Mac appeared baffled as he posted: ‘Personal apology from the ref to Josh Allen. I’ve seen it all man.’
‘The ref apologizing to Josh Allen on bench is just insane,’ one NFL fan account chimed in.
‘If this happened with Patrick Mahomes opposing fans would be having full on meltdowns,’ another claimed. ‘There would be a mob of crybabies and conspiracy theorists outside the stadium with torches and pitchforks.’
‘If a ref came up to Patrick Mahomes like this, twitter would burn to the ground,’ one Chiefs fan account echoed.
