Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen helped bully his way to a victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, but the game may have brought some bad news for his own career accolades.
The Bills were in desperate need of a win when they traveled to Pittsburgh, with the other wild-card contenders all winning on Sunday and the New England Patriots still several games ahead. The Bills delivered with a 26-7 victory, pulling away thanks to a strong defensive effort and two touchdowns from Allen.
Despite the strong performance, Allen may have fallen out of the running for a big career accomplishment — which instead appears to be going to a chief division rival.
Josh Allen’s Dwindling MVP Hopes
Allen’s chances of repeating as league MVP appear to be sinking fast, with his odds dropping him down and well out of the lead. As The Athletic’s Hannah Vanbiber noted, Allen fell to fifth place and is well behind the leaders.
New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye has pulled into the lead, just ahead of Los Angeles Rams signal-caller Matthew Stafford.
“At -120, Maye is now better than a 50-50 favorite to win MVP, with Stafford dropping to +115 (46 percent implied chance of winning) from his preferred spot last week at -235 (implied odds of over 70 percent!),” Vanbiber wrote.
Vanbiber added that Allen is dropping along with some other AFC rivals who came into the season as favorites to add another MVP trophy to their resumes.
“With preseason favorites Patrick Mahomes (+10000), Josh Allen (+2500) and Lamar Jackson (+30000) falling each week, the two stable favorites since mid-November seem to have only each other to compete against on the odds board,” Vanbiber wrote. “Stafford leads the league in touchdowns (32) and Maye leads in yards (3,412).”
There is still time for the dynamics of the race to change, but New England’s march toward the No. 1 overall seed could keep Maye in the lead — and Buffalo’s track toward a wild card — could prevent Allen from making a move.
The Bills would likely need to win out in order to win their sixth straight division title, while also getting some help from one of their other division rivals to beat the Patriots.
Josh Allen Made History in Sunday’s Win
Though Allen may not have a chance to repeat as league MVP, he is still knocking down league records along the way this season. In Sunday’s win, he had a bruising touchdown run in the third quarter that saw him bullying his way through the heart of Pittsburgh’s defense.
As NFL.com’s Grant Gordon noted, the score put Allen atop the record books.
“Allen’s 8-yard rushing score in the fourth quarter of the Buffalo Bills’ 26-7 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers was the 76th of his career, breaking a tie with Cam Newton for the most rushing TDs by a quarterback in NFL history,” Gordon wrote.
The Bills finished the game with 249 rushing yards, setting the record for a visiting team in Pittsburgh. Allen had 38 of those yards, though the Steelers mostly kept the passing game in check. Allen completed 15-of-23 passes for 123 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
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