Sunday, January 11, 2026, unfolded as a day of high stakes and swirling opinions for Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen and his wife, actress and singer Hailee Steinfeld. As Allen led the No. 6 seed Bills into a wild-card playoff clash against the No. 3 seed Jacksonville Jaguars at EverBank Stadium, Steinfeld was 2,500 miles away in Los Angeles, stepping onto the red carpet as a presenter at the 83rd annual Golden Globe Awards. The couple’s decision to spend this pivotal day apart has ignited passionate debate among NFL fans and pop culture observers alike, but for Allen and Steinfeld, it seems to be just another chapter in their headline-making year.
Allen, fresh off his 2024 NFL MVP award and a 13-4 regular season, showed why he’s one of the league’s elite. He completed 28 of 35 passes for 273 yards and a touchdown, and added 33 rushing yards with two crucial touchdowns on the ground. It was his seventh postseason appearance with the Bills, and he proved once again that he thrives under pressure. The Bills ultimately edged out the Jaguars, 27-24, thanks to Allen’s late rushing touchdown—a play that sent Buffalo fans into a frenzy and propelled the team into the divisional round. The game aired nationally on CBS, drawing millions of viewers and, inevitably, close scrutiny of every off-field storyline.
But while Allen was dissecting the Jaguars’ defense, Steinfeld was making waves of her own. The Oscar-nominated actress, 29, was announced just days before as one of the presenters for the Golden Globes, joining a star-studded lineup including George Clooney, Miley Cyrus, Jennifer Garner, and Snoop Dogg. Her film, “Sinners,” was up for seven awards, including Best Motion Picture: Drama, making her attendance both a professional obligation and a moment of personal triumph. The ceremony, hosted by Nikki Glaser, saw Steinfeld supporting her co-stars and the film’s creative team, even as social media buzzed with opinions about her absence from Jacksonville.
Steinfeld’s decision not to attend the playoff game—especially while pregnant with the couple’s first child—sparked a firestorm online. Critics questioned her priorities, with comments like, “She should be there for him,” and “It’s not the Super Bowl, but still…would like to see her there.” Others rushed to her defense, arguing, “God forbid a woman has her own life outside of her marriage,” and “They both have jobs? And they’re both choosing to do those jobs? I’m sure they’re still being very supportive of each other as usual.” One fan summed up the sentiment of many: “If Josh and Hailee are good with it, then we should be too.”
For Allen, the noise was just that—noise. Addressing reporters before kickoff, he made it clear that his focus was solely on the game. “It’s do whatever it takes to get the job done,” Allen said. “We’re not doing anything extra in terms of preparation. We feel like throughout the year, this is how we prepare. This is how we try to win football games. You may spend a little longer watching certain looks in terms of what they can do to you and trying to clean things up on our end. But I think the process is the process. The standard that we have is the standard. So, we’re not trying to change a whole lot, just the mindset of going in there being ready to play.”
The couple’s relationship has played out in the public eye since rumors first swirled in May 2023, when they were spotted together in New York and later in Los Cabos, Mexico. By July 2024, Allen made it “Instagram official” with a photo from Paris, a trip Steinfeld would later detail in her newsletter, Beau Society: “What makes Paris Paris is its specificity. I was in the City of Love with my love (highly recommend). Every morning we went on a hunt for the perfect chocolate croissant.” The pair announced their engagement in November 2024 and tied the knot on May 31, 2025. Their first child is expected in 2026, a milestone they shared joyfully with fans on social media in December 2025.
Despite the spotlight, Steinfeld has often tried to keep a low profile at Bills games, attending most of them during the 2024 season but steering clear of cameras. Now, with her career soaring and her family growing, balancing personal and professional commitments has become more complicated. In May 2025, she also revealed that her Netflix series “Arcane: League of Legends” would return for a second and final season in November—a testament to her ongoing success in both acting and music.
The Bills’ playoff victory over the Jaguars was a hard-fought battle. Jacksonville, led by first-year coach Liam Coen, came into the game with a 13-4 record and the AFC South crown—its first since 2022. But Allen’s late-game heroics, including a crucial rushing touchdown, dashed the Jaguars’ hopes and kept Buffalo’s Super Bowl dreams alive. For the Bills, the win was not just a testament to Allen’s leadership but also a relief for head coach Sean McDermott, whose job security had been the subject of speculation in late December. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported, “Some folks around the league have wondered to me whether Bills ownership might grow impatient with Sean McDermott if Buffalo doesn’t make a playoff run in a year Patrick Mahomes is out of the postseason.”
Looking ahead, the NFL postseason continues with the divisional round starting January 17, followed by the AFC and NFC Championship games on January 25, and Super Bowl LX set for February 8 in Las Vegas. The Seattle Seahawks, having secured the No. 1 seed in the NFC, are favorites to win it all, while the Denver Broncos hold the top spot in the AFC. NBC Sports’ Michael David Smith notes, “After the Seahawks beat the 49ers on Saturday night, they’ve become the favorites to win it all,” though the Rams remain strong contenders.
Amid the intensity of the NFL playoffs, Allen and Steinfeld found time for small, personal celebrations. In her January 9 Beau Society newsletter, Steinfeld shared that the couple honored their dogs’ birthdays with scrambled eggs and a touch of whipped cream—a simple tradition that hints at the quieter joys in their busy lives. “Where I’d normally take them on a walk or run around after them in the backyard, the snow on the ground didn’t exactly allow for that,” she wrote.
As the Bills gear up for the next round and Steinfeld continues to rack up accolades, one thing is clear: this power couple is navigating fame, family, and football on their own terms. Whether on the field or the red carpet, Allen and Steinfeld are proving they can handle the spotlight—and the scrutiny—with grace and determination.
