Bills Central

Josh Allen gives reason behind 'Mangia, Mangia!' audible used in Bills' win over Jets

The Bills QB called it an "ode to one of our favorite spots" while speaking to reporters after Tuesday's practice.
Sep 14, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17)
Sep 14, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Josh Allen is well known for his imagination post-snap. 

But this past Sunday, Allen had his pre-snap creativity highlighted in a viral moment during the Buffalo Bills’ 30-10 win over the New York Jets.

Early in the second quarter of the blowout victory over the Jets, Josh Allen alerted the Bills’ offense with an audible while wide receiver Joshua Palmer went in motion.

“Mangia! Mangia!” exclaimed Allen.

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The unique call quickly spread across social media, garnering thousands of interactions as various users shared the moment across many different platforms. Many wondered if the audible was a shoutout to the HBO series The Sopranos. Or maybe it was another element of the team’s “everybody eats” mentality.

Josh Allen
Sep 14, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) practices before the game against the New York Jets | Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images

Another assumption was that Allen was calling attention to one of his favorite restaurants in Western New York. And it turns out that was it.

“Obviously, we have a nice little restaurant here in Orchard Park that we frequented a lot last year in the quarterback room,” said Allen while speaking to reporters after Tuesday’s practice, via the Bills’ live stream. “So just an ode to one of our favorite spots.”

Mangia is an Italian Ristorante and Caffe’ located in the heart of the same town in which the Bills call home.

Allen was then asked if it did indeed have any relation to the “everybody eats” motto that the offense has instilled over the past two seasons.

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“Yes, we did,” added Allen. “There is a different meaning behind it that we won’t get into. We will leave that to internal usage. But yes, it is the ‘everybody eats,’ and eat good.”

“I think it gets talked about less, but it is the mindset that we have, guys going out there and doing their jobs that typically, you’re not going to get thrown in the stat sheet for.”

So, perhaps there was a dual meaning behind the pre-snap check called by Allen against the Jets. But the primary inspiration appears to have been one of Allen’s favorite eateries. Go figure.

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Alex Brasky
ALEX BRASKY

Alex Brasky is editor of Bills Digest and host of the Buffalo Pregame podcast. He has been on the Bills beat the past six seasons and now joins Sports Illustrated hoping to expand his coverage of Buffalo’s favorite football team.

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