When the Bills trailed New England 21-0 in the second quarter, it looked like Josh Allen's MVP argument was all but over. It looked like the Bills' chances at winning the division, or the Super Bowl, were falling apart as well.
But then, just as he did against the Ravens and Bengals earlier this season, Josh Allen put on the cape and led his team to a season-defining comeback win.
Down 21-0, and then 24-7, the Bills relentlessly pushed the ball downfield in the second half. Allen led his fourth game-winning drive and his fourth comeback of the season, and put together a massive stat line to show for it.
While he didn't have a lot of passing yards, Allen scored and ran the ball well. He finished with 193 yards of passing and 48 yards of rushing. He completed 19 of 28 passes and threw three touchdowns, while not throwing a single interception. His passer rating was 123.1, making it one of his best games of the season.
Josh Allen's Week 15 performance adds to his MVP case
That performance might not scream MVP on its own, but context is important here. Allen was already considered the No. 3 candidate in the MVP race (behind Matthew Stafford and Drake Maye), and needed a marquee win to move up the rankings.
Not only did he earn that marquee win, courtesy of a 21-point road comeback against a divisional rival, but he did it while beating the guy ahead of him in the MVP race. And Allen significantly outplayed Maye in the second half.
While the Patriots scored 31 points, Maye was mostly ineffective. He completed 14 of 23 passes for 155 yards and did not throw any touchdowns, while tossing one pick. He did rush for two touchdowns on 43 rushing yards, but the offense was mostly carried by his running backs, who combined for 203 rushing yards.
With a third big-time, comeback win under his belt, Allen has a strong case to be the back-to-back MVP. It's very likely that after outplaying Maye in New England, Allen will be pushed as a serious MVP candidate. While Stafford is still the ultimate favorite, Allen is creeping up. With three more good games to finish the season, Allen just might pull it off.