In a year from hotly contested campaignsthe NFL MVP race has given fans and pundits plenty to debate.
The race between Buffalo Bills running back Josh Allen and Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson has sparked a flurry of discussion on social media and sports talk shows in recent weeks. Allen is currently the -300 favorite to win the award, while Jackson has the second best odds at +225.
Allen and Jackson make strong but somewhat divergent arguments for the award, with no clear consensus as to which case is stronger.
For Allen, a fifth straight division title, a 13-3 record and a lone win against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs are the headlines of 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 season, though he doesn’t lead the league in any specific category.
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But Jackson makes a very different argument as the league’s most statistically efficient player 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. But Jackson’s statistical output is diminished, compared to Allen’s, by the fact that the Ravens have just 11 wins and have yet to clinch their division with a week to go.
Jackson’s Ravens also defeated Allen’s Bills, 35-10, in the meeting this season.
These factors earned Jackson the support of a number of voters in the media, some of whom publicly expressed their support for the Ravens star.
NFL insider Dianna Russini made it clear she plans to vote for Jackson during Tuesday’s episode of the “Scoop City” podcast, citing superior statistical performance.
“I lean on Lamar,” Russini said. “I don’t think Josh Allen did anything this weekend to make me say, ‘OK, he stole this.’
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Meanwhile, FOX Sports NFL analyst and MVP voter Emmanuel Acho 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, compared to the Ravens. The Bills are 20th in total defense this year while the Ravens are 14th. Jackson also has the advantage of relying on multiple league leader running back Derrick Henry as a co-star, while Allen lacks big superstars in his offense.
“Simply put, Josh Allen has to do as much, if not more, with less,” Acho said. “I watched the Ravens game again last night and there were times, if not most of the time, when I was like, ‘Who’s the best player on the Ravens offense?’ I mean, make no mistake, Derrick Henry rushed for over 120 yards in that game. I’m sitting there watching this game, and I’m saying the Ravens offense only has Josh Allen.”
Meanwhile, NFL on CBS and former Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo made an argument NFL fans mocked and repeated in the debate. Romo argued that Allen should have a better shot at the award since he has yet to win it, while Jackson already has two MVPs.
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“I think they’re tied in my brain. I think Josh Allen might have the edge just because Lamar had two. If Josh had two, you’d side with the guy who doesn’t have one. It’s just human nature in my opinion, ” Romo said, covering the Bills’ win over the New York Jets on Sunday.
ESPN First Take host and former Super Bowl champion Ryan Clark has been one of Jackson’s loudest advocates in the MVP race this year. Clark argued that if Allen was chosen as the MVP over Jackson, it would only be because the voters had already awarded Jackson the MVP twice. He compared it to examples in the NBA where Michael Jordan
Both players have one more game to polish their MVP cases. However, it’s possible Jackson will be the only player to do so this Sunday.
With the Bills already wrapped up in their division title and locked into the No. 2 seed in the NFL playoffs, head coach Sean McDermott said Allen will not play the entire game against the New England Patriots on Sunday. McDermott told reporters that Allen will start the game to maintain his current streak of starting games for the team, but will come off the field at some point early.
Jackson will have to lead his team to a victory against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday for Baltimore to clinch the AFC North title.
If Jackson puts in another dominant performance while Allen sits on the bench most of Sunday, it could change the current betting odds and change the race.
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