Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen edged Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson for the NFL’s Most Valuable Player Award, the league announced at its NFL Honors award ceremony on Thursday, Feb. 6, in New Orleans.
Jackson was seeking his second straight league MVP Award and third overall, and he and Allen had been considered the front-runners throughout the season. The other finalists included Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff.
Voting for the NFL’s annual awards, done by a group of 50 media members, is completed before the postseason begins.
Jackson, the league’s MVP in both 2019 and 2023, had been looking to become just the seventh three-time MVP. Instead, Allen, selected in the same draft as Jackson in 2018, takes home the league’s top honor for the first time.
Allen surpassing Jackson to claim the honor comes as a moderate surprise since the same voters who select the MVP award voted Jackson as the first-team All-Pro quarterback.
According to the Associated Press, Jackson had received 30 of 50 first-place votes in the All-Pro voting, but in the MVP race, Allen received the first-place vote on 27 ballots and Jackson was first on the other 23. Each was named either first or second in the MVP voting on 49 of the 50 ballots; Allen had one third-place vote, and Jackson received one fourth-place vote.
Allen finished with 383 overall points while Jackson finished with 362.
Allen becomes the third MVP winner who was not named first-team All-Pro. The others were Steve McNair, a co-winner of the MVP Award with Peyton Manning in 2003, and John Elway in 1987.
The Ravens this year won the AFC North for the second straight year with a 12-5 record but were eliminated from the postseason in a 27-25 divisional round loss against Allen and the Bills in Buffalo.
The Allen-Jackson MVP debate has raged for the past two months and is sure to continue, especially among Ravens fans. Jackson’s supporters will note that Jackson faced a more imposing schedule, exceeded Allen in most statistical categories and in almost every metric surpassed his 2023 season in which he came within one vote of a unanimous MVP award.
Jackson this year had his best season ever as a passer, and he remained a dynamic component of the league’s top-ranked rushing attack.
Led by Jackson, the Ravens this year became the first team in NFL history to record 3,000 rushing yards and 4,000 passing yards. The team finished with a franchise-record 7,224 yards of total offense and ranked No. 1 in the league with 424.9 yards per game.
Jackson through the air went 316-for-474 for 4,172 yards, establishing career highs in all three categories. He threw 41 touchdown passes — also a career high — and just four interceptions. His final passer rating of 119.6 is the best of his career and the fourth-highest mark in NFL history.
Jackson became the first player in NFL history to record 4,000 passing yards, 40 passing touchdowns and fewer than five interceptions.
Allen finished 307-for-483 for 3,731 yards and 28 touchdowns, with six interceptions. He also ran 102 times for 531 yards and 12 touchdowns, leading the Bills to a 13-4 record and the AFC East title.
As a runner, Jackson finished with 139 carries for 915 yards and four touchdowns. Against the Houston Texans on Christmas, Jackson broke Michael Vick’s all-time NFL record for rushing yards by a quarterback and finished the season with 6,173.
Among his other superlatives in 2024, Jackson also became the first player in NFL history to record at least 4,000 passing yards and 800 rushing yards in the same season.
Running back Derrick Henry and Jackson formed a 1-2 punch for a rushing attack that led the league with 3,189 rushing yards (187.6 per game).
Playing alongside Jackson, Henry thrived in his first season with the Ravens. Henry finished with 1,921 rushing yards and a league-high and franchise-record 16 rushing touchdowns. Henry averaged 5.9 yards per carry, the highest total of his nine-year career.
Henry, along with Jackson was a finalist for the league’s Offensive Player of the Year Award, but that award went to Barkley. Jackson finished second in that voting, while Henry placed fourth.
In other top awards announced at the NFL Honors ceremony, Denver Broncos cornerback Patrick Surtain II was named the Defensive Player of the Year, Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels was named the Offensive Rookie of the Year and edge rusher Jared Verse of the Los Angeles Rams was named the Defensive Rookie of the Year. Burrow topped former Ravens running back J.K. Dobbins for the Comeback Player of the Year award.
Kevin O’Connell of the Minnesota Vikings was named Coach of the Year and former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who has since been named head coach of the Chicago Bears, was named the Assistant Coach of the Year.
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