A Year of Debate: Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson Vie for NFL MVP
In a year of hotly contested campaigns, the NFL MVP race has given fans and pundits plenty to argue about. The race between Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen and Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson has ignited a flurry of arguments on social media and sports talk shows in recent weeks.
Allen is currently the odds-on favorite at -300 to win the award, while Jackson has the second-best odds at +225. Both players have strong cases for the award, with no clear consensus over which one is stronger.
For Allen, a fifth-straight division title, a 13-3 record, and the only win against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs headline his campaign. Statistically, Allen’s 3,731 passing yards and 28 touchdown passes, along with 531 rushing yards with 12 touchdowns on the ground, anchor his MVP-caliber season, even though he doesn’t lead the league in any specific category.
On the other hand, Jackson brings a very different argument as the most statistically efficient player in the league this year. Jackson leads the league in touchdown percentage and passing yards per attempt while also leading the entire league (quarterbacks and running backs) in rushing yards per carry. However, his statistical performance is weighed down by the fact that the Ravens only have 11 wins and haven’t clinched their division yet with one week to go. Jackson’s Ravens also defeated Allen’s Bills, 35-10, in their meeting this season.
Several voters have expressed their support for Jackson publicly, including NFL insider Dianna Russini, who stated, “I am leaning Lamar. I don’t think Josh Allen did anything this weekend to make me go, ‘OK, he stole this thing.’”
FOX Sports NFL analyst and MVP voter Emmanuel Acho, on the other hand, argued in favor of Allen during an episode of FS1’s “The Facility,” citing the fact that Buffalo has an inferior overall roster, especially on defense, when compared to the Ravens. The Bills rank 20th in total defense this year, while the Ravens are 14th.
Both players have one more game to polish off their respective MVP cases, with Jackson potentially leading his team to a victory against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday to clinch the AFC North title for Baltimore. If Jackson puts up another dominant performance while Allen rides the bench for most of the game, it could swing the current betting odds and change the race.
