Josh Allen and his family were nothing but excited for the NFL Draft prior to Wednesday evening, which is when they found out the hard way that the internet never forgets. Now that some vulgar tweets he sent years ago are out there for everyone to see, Allen is trying to take responsibility and move forward.
Allen spoke with ESPN’s Chris Mortensen on Thursday, and he said the release of his tweets had him “in a panic.” The former Wyoming star said he had previously gone through his social media accounts and thought his agency had done the same, but the tweets must have been missed.
“If I could go back in time, I would never have done this in a heartbeat,” Allen told Mortensen. “At the time, I obviously didn’t know how harmful it was and now has become.
“I hope you know and others know I’m not the type of person I was at 14 and 15 that I tweeted so recklessly. … I don’t want that to be the impression of who I am, because that is not me. I apologize for what I did.”
Allen told ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith on Wednesday that some of the inappropriate tweets made reference to rap lyrics and television show quotes, and others may have been sent by friends who took his phone. He also said the situation has put a damper on his draft experience, but he is hoping to prove to his future teammates that the things he wrote several years ago are not a reflection on the person he is today.
“It sucks,” Allen said. “My family is hurting. We never envisioned a day or night like this. … I will set the record straight for any team, any teammate, the media, and I think once they meet me and they’re around me, see how I act and how I think, that it’s not going to be a problem at all.”
The tweets, which have since been deleted but can be read here, were written when Allen was in high school. He had no known character issues at Wyoming, so it seems unlikely that his draft stock will be impacted.
