WATCH: QB Josh Allen dons stylish black Bills helmet at practice

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen kept his tradition alive at the team's annual Return of the Blue & Red practice.

Bills quarterback Josh Allen signs autographs for fans following practice on day seven. / Shawn Dowd/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK

Quarterback Josh Allen loves toying with the Buffalo faithful.

The quarterback has established a tradition in recent years, a ritual in which he dons a unique Bills helmet upon taking the field at the team’s annual Return of the Blue & Red practice at Highmark Stadium. It started in 2022 when he wore a throwback red helmet, giving fans hope that the beloved headgear would soon be making a return (it still hasn’t).

He donned an… interesting blue helmet at last year’s practice, continuing the practice this year by wearing a matte black helmet as he ran onto the Highmark Stadium turn in front of a raucous crowd. The helmet features a red stripe down the middle and the team’s iconic ‘standing buffalo’ throwback logo on the side; the red facemask and Allen’s tinted visitor complete the non-traditional, but generally kind of sharp look.

Our favorite @JoshAllenQB tradition. #GoBills | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/crXrkw2f5g

— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) August 2, 2024

Related: Josh Allen clearly loves Bills offensive coordinator's approach

The matte black helmet looks neat in a vacuum and would likely work if paired with a black uniform; when combined with the team’s standard ‘color rush’ jersey, however, it looks a bit strange and out of place. It at least looks better than last year’s blue helmet, however.

Making dreams come true. #GoBills | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/wCdEdGUnr1

— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) August 2, 2024

Buffalo last debuted a new alternate jersey in 2015, still occasionally wearing its red ‘color rush’ jersey as an alternate. Allen’s black helmet likely isn’t indicative of a new supplementary jersey in the works, but if the fan reaction is strong enough, perhaps an ultimate Bills black-out uniform is possible.

The vast majority of the Buffalo faithful, however, would likely prefer to simply see red helmets brought back.

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