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WATCH: Jacksonville City Council Member takes shot at Josh Allen at stadium vote

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is catching strays from Duval County.

Kyle Silagyi

Oct 8, 2023; London United Kingdom, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17)] throws the ball under pressure from Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Folorunso Fatukasi (94) during the first half of an NFL International Series game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 8, 2023; London United Kingdom, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17)] throws the ball under pressure from Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Folorunso Fatukasi (94) during the first half of an NFL International Series game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
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The Jacksonville Jaguars—who have long been viewed as the NFL franchise on perhaps the shakiest ground in terms of long-term feasibility—secured their standing in their home market Tuesday evening as the Jacksonville City Council overwhelmingly approved plans for a $1.4 billion renovation of EverBank Stadium.

It’s an encouraging development that marks another win for the health of small(er) markets across the league; fans were a bit disenfranchised after the Rams left St. Louis and Raiders left Oakland in relatively rapid succession, but with the Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans recently securing new stadiums in their home markets, the league’s recent era of musical chairs relocation appears to be over.

Fans in Buffalo and Jacksonville should be united in their excitement. Their respective teams are sticking around for the foreseeable future.

But a Jacksonville City Council Member just had to take a shot at the Bills during the vote.

The shot was more specifically at Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen and his standing compared to Jacksonville pass-rusher Josh Allen; when discussing the community benefits agreement included as part of the package, Council Member Will Lahnen brought up Buffalo’s CBA, working a dig at Allen into his response.

“We’re about to vote on a $175 million CBA—$56 million in taxpayer funding, $119 million from the Jaguars, which is not only the biggest CBA ever, it’s by double,” Lahnen said. “Buffalo has a, I think, $90 million . . . that was the biggest ever prior to that, and I know that we’re going to work in good faith to increase it further. I think if nothing else, Buffalo already has the No. 2 Josh Allen, they’re about to get the No. 2 CBA, as well.”

Ouch.

Lahnen, of course, is entitled to his own opinion, even if it’s wrong. Jacksonville’s Allen is an incredible pass-rusher who has developed into one of the league’s best since being selected in the top 10 of the 2019 NFL Draft—he’s notched 45 career sacks and is coming off a 2023 campaign in which he tallied a career-high 17.5 quarterback takedowns.

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And though they play different positions, it’s difficult to say that Jacksonville’s Allen is better than Buffalo’s with a straight face. The quarterback is objectively one of the best players in football—he’s totaled over 40 touchdowns in an NFL-record four-straight seasons and is coming off a 2023 campaign in which he notched a league-high 44 total scores. He’s earned NFL MVP votes in three out of the last four years.

Again, nothing against the Allen who resides in Duval County—the one who lives in Erie County is just better.

Strange football-centric shots layered into stadium deals aside, it’s great to see that the Jaguars will no longer have the threat of relocation looming over their head. Allen will have the opportunity to show Jacksonville that he is the best of his name when Buffalo hosts the Jaguars in a Week 3 Monday Night Football matchup next season.

—Enjoy free coverage of the Bills from Buffalo Bills on SI—

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Kyle Silagyi
KYLE SILAGYI

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