Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen has long had sporting aspirations that extend far beyond the football field.
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“Being a U.S. Olympic gold medalist is a dream that I’ve always had,” the former NFL MVP told NBC, “and I’ve never had the chance to accomplish it.”
Allen played baseball and basketball — in addition to football — at Firebaugh High School in Firebaugh, Calif. He has since become an avid golfer.
But Allen quickly discovered that he did not have a future in winter sports.
“I went snowboarding in seventh grade and I was going down a box-jump type situation and I slipped and fell and landed on my left wrist and I broke my left wrist,” Allen said. “And then I looked at my dad and he said, ‘Son, if you want to continue to play football and baseball and basketball, you can’t do this anymore.’ So I kind of cut it out cold turkey after that. But I do miss it. I really do miss it.”
Allen’s Olympic outlook has never looked better, though. The NFL voted to allow players to participate in the Olympic debut of flag football at the 2028 Los Angeles Games, giving Allen and others the potential to play.
“I would sign up tomorrow to be on the team,” Allen said. “I’ve always dreamed of competing for my country and being able to wear my own gold medal, but we’ll see how it works.”
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USA Football, the sport’s national governing body, will determine the Olympic roster. It remains to be seen whether they will prioritize established flag players over NFL players.
“I don’t know if they’d want me,” Allen said. “I don’t know the ins-and-outs really of flag football. I watched that deal, maybe a couple months ago, and it was a much different game than I thought it would be. But I do think that if there is a potential space, I would love to do it.
“I’m from California. It’s in LA. You know, I live here now, so who knows?”
Allen was interviewed for NBC by freestyle skier Chris Lillis, a two-time Olympic gold medalist in the mixed team aerials event. Lillis became a diehard Bills fan growing up in Pittsford, New York. Allen was promoting the extension of his partnership with the drug-free sleep aid brand Natrol, which has become an even bigger part of Allen’s wellness routine after welcoming his daughter Harper in April.
Lillis asked Allen if there was an Olympic sport he would like to try outside of flag football. Allen initially answered swimming before settling on the sliding sports of bobsled, luge and skeleton.
“I think a lot of weight there would be beneficial,” said Allen, who listed at 6-foot-5 and 237 pounds. “I think I could do it.”
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