Getty Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen celebrates against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 3
Throughout his NFL career, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen has drawn a lot of comparisons to current and former NFL greats.
Former San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh compared Allen to a younger Cam Newton as well as current Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes earlier this year before their Monday Night Football matchup. Then, earlier this week, Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Wink Martindale said Allen was like a young Ben Roethlisberger with Dan Marino’s arm.
Earlier this week, when 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman made an appearance on the Chris Collinsworth Podcast, Allen drew another comparison when the future Hall of Famer said Allen reminded him of current Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
“The fact that when he extends it (a play), you have to be super cognizant,” Sherman said during the episode about Allen’s ability to extend plays casually with his legs. “They ran seven-seven on me one time, and I’m the third defender so I’m obviously responsible for the deeper seven. But when teams seven-seven, the first seven is usually at like 15-yards or so and the second seven is at 30-yards. Their first seven was at 40-yards and their second seven was heading to 70-yards. And so, it stretched me so far down the field, but I still had to go to the high seven, because if I would have taken the 40-yard he would have hit the 70-yard. So, that always has to be in your mind because not only can he throw it anywhere he wants, but he can also get it anywhere on the field and that’s similar to Aaron.”
Sherman has been one of the best cornerbacks in the league for quite some time and with his knowledge of the game, especially in the defensive secondary, his opinions of an opposing quarterback can hold weight.
Although Sherman only played in five games this season, he had the opportunity to face Allen and the Bills and the former Wyoming signal-caller turned in one of his best games of the season. He completed 32 of his 40 pass attempts for 375 yards and four touchdowns as the Bills lit up the 49ers, 34-24 in primetime.
It was ultimately a win that put Allen on the map and into the NFL MVP conversation for good.
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Rodgers and Allen are Atop the NFL MVP Conversation
Sherman’s comparison between Allen and Rodgers also comes at an interesting time as both quarterbacks are at the top of the NFL MVP conversation at the end of the regular season.
Allen finished with 4,544 passing yards compared to Rodgers’ 4,299, but Rodgers threw for 48 touchdowns compared to Allen’s 37. The veteran also had a slightly better completion percentage, 70.7% compared to Allen’s 69.2%, but Allen also rushed for eight touchdowns, and caught one as well.
The conversation is ongoing, but vegasinsider.com has Rodgers listed as the NFL MVP favorite at -400. They also have Mahomes at +350 and Allen at +1300.
Allen is Up for the FedEx Air FL Player of the Year
Just a few days out from their second-round matchup against the Baltimore Ravens, Allen was named as a finalist for the FedEx Air NFL Player of the Year. Allen is up against both Rodgers and Mahomes for the award as well, but fans can actually have a say in this award.
Fans can vote for Allen to win the award on NFL.com or they can vote on the NFL’s Twitter poll. Voting runs through February 2.
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