Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen has had some pretty good years. He has taken his team to the playoffs and has won the AFC East on many different occasions. However, one individual award has eluded the signal-caller, and this might be the year he brings it home.
Allen Looking for First NFL Most Valuable Player Award
Allen has certainly made his case for his first NFL Most Valuable Player Award this season. He has thrown for 3,731 yards and 28 touchdowns versus only six interceptions. Allen has also rushed for an additional 531 yards with another 12 touchdowns.
If he doesn’t win it this year, you might ask when he will. Despite all of his on-field success, he has never won the award.
It does not help his cause that the Bills clinched the No. 2 seed in the playoffs. Along with the Kansas City Chiefs, they are the favorites to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl.
Allen has plenty of competition for the award. Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens and Saquon Barkley of the Philadelphia Eagles are also having career years and have something to say to the voters about their own accolades.
As if Barkley and Jackson are not enough competition, three-time Super Bowl champion Patrick Mahomes and Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow are also having stellar seasons and will garner some support from the voters.
However it is a two-man race between Allen and Jackson.
Barkley has eclipsed the 2,000-yard plateau and was on pace to set the single-season rushing record, but was rested in Week 18 and fell 101 yards short of the long-standing record.
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Jackson, the 2023 NFL Most Valuable Player, has thrown an amazing 41 touchdowns this season versus only four interceptions. The touchdown to interception ratio is unheard of.
It should also be pointed out he shares a backfield with Derrick Henry. Both are capable of turning upfield with the ball at any moment and scoring a touchdown with their legs. Jackson is the favorite to win the award, but Allen is close on his heels. At this point, one could flip a coin to decide who to vote for.
Mahomes, meanwhile, has directed the Chiefs to a 15-2 record but did not play in their Week 18 blowout loss to the Denver Broncos. Most of the Chiefs’ offensive starters took the day off as coach Andy Reid fielded a junior varsity team with the Chiefs having nothing to play for.
Burrow will lose votes because he plays on a very mediocre Bengals team that failed to make the playoffs. His individual statistics are very impressive, but this is not the Offensive Player of the Year Award. This is for the MVP. Burrow threw for 4,918 yards and 43 touchdowns.
Allen has had a very impressive career, although past seasonal statistics are not a determining factor in MVP voting. He has thrown for more than 26,000 yards and almost 200 touchdowns.
The University of Wyoming graduate will definitely factor into MVP voting and could lead the Bills to the World Championship if they could beat the Chiefs for the second time this season. Allen has directed the Bills to wins over the two No. 1 seeds from each conference. He also won at Detroit.