‘Reigning MVP’ Is Back in the Room: Josh Allen Named AP 2025 NFL MVP Finalist Again

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is back where the league keeps expecting him to be. On Jan. 22, Allen was named a finalist for the Associated Press 2025 NFL Most Valuable Player award, putting him in the same conversation that has followed his prime for most of the decade.The winner will be announced at “NFL Honors” on Feb. 5 at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, three days before Super Bowl LX. Allen enters as the reigning MVP, a label that now cuts both ways. It raises the standard. It sharpens the scrutiny.Allen’s regular-season case is built on output, durability, and historical pace. He completed 69.3% of his passes in 2025, throwing for 3,668 yards, 25 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions, while posting a 102.2 passer rating. He added 579 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns, continuing to blur the line between quarterback and short-yardage weapon.The Bills reached the playoffs for a seventh straight season, but the run ended early. Buffalo lost to Denver in the divisional round, and the organization fired Sean McDermott soon after. That context matters. MVP voters often penalize postseason flameouts, even when the award is technically based on the regular season.Still, Allen stacked milestones at a rate few quarterbacks have matched. According to the Bills’ official site, his 2025 season included becoming the youngest and fastest player to reach 300 regular-season touchdowns, passing Cam Newton for most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback, and surpassing Peyton Manning for most total touchdowns by a player age 30 or younger. He also reached 30,000 career passing yards and recorded multiple games with both passing and rushing dominance that had never been seen before.The résumé reads like a counterargument to voter fatigue. Allen did not just repeat past success. He extended it.Allen is not alone. The AP named Trevor Lawrence, Drake Maye, Christian McCaffrey, and Matthew Stafford as fellow finalists, per the Associated Press. Every name brings a different type of pressure.Maye led the NFL in passer rating and completion percentage while taking New England to the AFC championship game. Stafford led the league with 4,707 passing yards and 46 touchdowns and earned his first first-team All-Pro nod. McCaffrey once again separated himself as an all-purpose threat, finishing with 2,298 yards from scrimmage while helping San Francisco survive a season riddled with injuries.Voting closed before the playoffs, but context still lingers. A nationwide panel of 50 media members ranked their top five choices, with first-place votes carrying 10 points, per the Associated Press. Allen won this award last year by edging out Lamar Jackson, despite Jackson earning first-team All-Pro honors.That history matters. Allen enters this vote as the man to beat, but also the one voters may feel they have already rewarded.