Allen v Jackson for MVP and a breathtaking play: NFL end of season awards
Allen v Jackson for MVP and a breathtaking play: NFL end of season awards
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With the Super Bowl on the horizon we pick the outstanding players, coaches and moments from the 2023 season in the NFL. Josh Allen, QB, Buffalo Bills. Take your pick between transcendent quarterbacks: Allen or Lamar Jackson. Neither answer is wrong. I edge towards Allen here, for the sole reason that he hasn’t won the award before. That’s not right; it’s not fair. But it’s the only way to split the fine margins between the two.
![[Zack Baun has improved an already formidable Eagles defense.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f614e0d2506cf6306e981cfdfdf43edc5f19c30b/0_326_6042_3625/master/6042.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Jackson has the stronger statistical case. Allen’s is based on numbers and vibes. He sanded the rough edges off his game this year, allowing the Bills to lean into their powerful run game before he donned his cape in crucial moments. In a pass-heavy offense, Allen’s numbers may have been even more eye-popping. But by embracing a new style, Allen was able to pilot the most efficient, effective offense of his career.
![[Dan Quinn helped turn around the fortunes of the Washington Commanders.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/45dc45534b3a14090e7556caef4c34f8563cc4d3/0_152_3440_2065/master/3440.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Saquon Barkley, RB, Philadelphia Eagles. Thank you, football gods, for delivering us a healthy Barkley season behind the best run-blocking line in the league. Every Barkley carry this season has been an adventure. You don’t know what’s coming; you just prepare to be amazed. It could be leaping backward over a defender, making a would-be tackler tumble out of his cleats, or slithering through the smallest of gaps before darting away for a 50-yard score. Even without the ball, Barkley has been must-see TV, flattening pass-rushers in protection. But it’s his home-run threat that has sparkled this year. Barkley has 11 rushing touchdowns of 60-plus yards in the regular season and postseason, putting him second all-time behind Adrian Peterson. Not even Jim Brown ripped off chunk plays at this clip.
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