When quarterback Josh Allen fell to the Buffalo Bills with the seventh overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft out of the University of Wyoming, he was not a sure thing nor a finished product. That is why he was passed over by six other teams and did not go with the first pick or even in the top five.
Allen was an inaccurate signal caller coming out of college, and did not overwhelm the competition in the Mountain West Conference. But he had a unique skill set, including a canon for an arm, that made him a thrilling high-end prospect. If he put the work in to harness and developed his talent, the sky would be the limit, and his ceiling was becoming the NFL’s best quarterback.
Allen turned himself into everything the Bills could have hoped for and imagined. And now Allen is an MVP, beating out Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson to take home his first NFL MVP award, which was given out at Thursday’s NFL Honors show. He is the third Bills player to win the award, joining running backs Thurman Thomas in 1991 and the late O.J. Simpson in 1973.
“Feels good,” Allen said backstage after receiving his award. “I feel like my teammates wanted this for me more than I did, but I’m honored.”
The vote was tight. Allen earned 27 first-place votes and Jackson got the other 23. The AP voting system has five players on each MVP ballot with a scale weighted points for each spot, and Allen had 383 points to 362 for Jackson.
It was supposed to be a retooling season for the Bills after they let go of some high-priced veterans and traded receiver Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans. Instead, Allen transformed and elevated his play, thanks in large part to offensive coordinator Joe Brady, and the Bills posted a record of 13-4. The Bills did not accomplish their ultimate goal of making it to Super Bowl LIX, which is still an item missing in Allen’s résumé and the Bills franchise as a whole. But he has an MVP to his credit now.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe MVP race in 2024 was noteworthy because it was actually a race. It had been quite a while since there was any suspense about who would win heading into the announcement.
The last time an MVP race was decided by fewer than 15 first-place votes was 2012, when the Minnesota Vikings Adrian Peterson beat out Peyton Manning, who was a member of the Denver Broncos. The last time it was decided by fewer than 10 votes was 2005, when Seattle Seahawks Shaun Alexander got just 19 of 50 votes, with Manning getting 13 and Tom Brady picking up 10. For almost twenty years, every MVP was well known long before it was official.
This season was different. Allen took the lead during his great season, but there was a lot of support for Jackson in the final few weeks. The Philadelphia Eagles Saquon Barkley also had supporters, though it has become almost impossible for any non-quarterback to get MVP votes. The intrigue grew when Jackson was named first-team All-Pro quarterback by the same 50 voters who select MVP. The last time the first-team All-Pro quarterback and NFL MVP were different players was back in 1987, when John Elway won MVP, but Joe Montana was the All-Pro QB (in 2003 Steve McNair was co-MVP with Peyton Manning but was not a first-team All-Pro).
For Allen to win MVP over Jackson, it would take a reversal of a 37-year voting trend.
“I was pretty surprised.” Allen said. “Given what we know about how typically the voting goes, and Lamar was very deserving of this award as well.”
Both players had fantastic seasons. Jackson had mostly better numbers. Allen got credit for elevating a lesser supporting cast with no number one receiver.
• Jackson: 4,172 passing yards, 41 touchdowns, 4 interceptions, 119.6 passer rating, 915 rushing yards, 4 rushing touchdowns
• Allen: 3,731 passing yards, 28 touchdowns, 6 interceptions, 101.4 passer rating, 531 rushing yards, 12 rushing touchdowns
Allen’s MVP hype took off after a loss. Against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 14, Allen had three passing touchdowns and three rushing touchdowns. He became the first player in NFL regular-season history with three passing and three rushing touchdowns in a game. The Bills lost 44-42, but that game propelled Allen into the catbird seat to win MVP.
There could have been some voter fatigue involved, considering Jackson already had two MVPs under his belt and Allen did not have any to his name, but the end result was Allen winning the award even after the same voting panel selected Jackson as the best quarterback in the NFL for the All-Pro team with a vote of 30-18.
Like Jackson, Allen’s legacy will not be cemented until he makes and wins a Super Bowl with the Bills. It has been a difficult journey with three-time champion Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs in the middle of a dynasty. But there is no doubting Allen’s greatness as a player. He has become a fantastic dual-threat quarterback, able to make breath-taking plays with his elite arm talent or by scrambling when everything breaks down in the pocket.
Allen has carried the Bills offense on his shoulders for years, and he finally has an MVP award to show for it.
