Cover 32: Josh Allen becoming the boogeyman of AFC playoff race, plus game balls, biggest gaffes from Week 15

Josh Allen is becoming inevitable. With No. 17 lurking, no deficit seems to be insurmountable for the Buffalo Bills these days, with Week 15's comeback win over the New England Patriots the most recent example. Allen and Co. found themselves in a 21-0 hole midway through the second quarter. At that juncture, it felt like a blowout was imminent with the Patriots en route to locking up the AFC East crown, thus snapping Buffalo's five-season streak as division champions. 

That was until Allen morphed into a role that he's grown quite accustomed to this season: the boogeyman. 

The reigning NFL MVP led five straight touchdown drives and spearheaded a second half that saw Buffalo outscore New England 28-7 to secure the 35-31 victory. He was an immoveable force over that stretch, completing 13 of his 20 pass attempts over the final two quarters for 158 yards and two touchdowns, which gave him a 122.5 passer rating. This performance comes just one week after Allen and the Bills erased a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to the Cincinnati Bengals. 

This season, Allen has been one of the most efficient quarterbacks late in games. In the second half, he's No. 1 in the league in completion percentage and yards per attempt, while ranking second in passer rating and passing touchdowns. When you condense it to just the fourth quarter, Allen remains atop the league in most meaningful categories, with his 0.43 EPA per dropback head and shoulder above Matthew Stafford (0.35), who is second in the league. 

Not only should that make him an MVP candidate once again, but his looming presence in the AFC playoff field should send shivers down the spine of every other contender. 

Despite coming out of Week 15 as the No. 6 seed in the AFC playoff picture, Buffalo is the team that likely instills the most fear in other clubs, and that's wholeheartedly due to the presence of Allen, especially as he's continued to develop this knack for not going gently into that good night. 

Game balls

Trevor Lawrence

JAC • QB • #16

CMP%59.9

YDs3210

TD23

INT11

YD/Att7.04

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• Week 15 stats: Completed 20 of 32 passes, 330 yards passing, 5 TDs; 5 carries, 51 yards rushing, 1 rushing TD

Lawrence went nuclear in Week 15, tallying a total of six touchdowns in a blowout win over the New York Jets. He became the first Jaguars quarterback to throw five or more touchdowns and rush for a touchdown in a game in franchise history, and just the fifth NFL player to do so in the Super Bowl era. Lawrence quietly leads the NFL in yards per attempt (8.4) since the trade deadline. 

Travis Etienne

JAC • RB • #1

Att213

Yds949

TD7

FL0

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• Week 15 stats: 12 carries, 32 yards rushing; 3 catches, 73 yards receiving, 3 receiving TDs

As Lawrence feasted against the Jets defense, Etienne was his go-to target. He became the first running back in franchise history to have three receiving touchdowns in a game, and was the first back to do so any any game since Samaje Perine in 2022. Coming into Week 15, Etienne had three receiving touchdowns in his first 62 career games. 

Dallas Goedert

PHI • TE • #88

TAR73

REC54

REC YDs551

REC TD9

FL0

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• Week 15 stats: 6 catches, 70 yards receiving, 2 TDs

The Eagles offense came alive on Sunday in a 31-0 shutout win over the Raiders. While the competition wasn't particularly tough, it was a much-needed day for Philadelphia, which snapped a three-game losing streak in the process. As the offense woke up, Dallas Goedert was one of the main catalysts, hauling in two touchdowns in the win. Goedert is up to nine receiving touchdowns on the season, which is the second most by an Eagles tight end in franchise history.

Bo Nix

DEN • QB • #10

CMP%63.5

YDs3256

TD23

INT9

YD/Att6.46

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• Week 15 stats: Completed 23 of 34 passes, 302 yards passing, 4 TDs;  7 carries, 10 yards rushing

Bo Nix may have just played his best game as a pro during Denver's win over the Green Bay Packers. In what was billed as a potential Super Bowl LX preview, Nix balled out with four passing touchdowns. This was already his third career game with at least four passing scores and zero interceptions, joining Peyton Manning and John Elway to have as many such games in franchise history. This win also clinched Denver a playoff spot and extended its winning streak to 11 games. 

Tuli Tuipulotu

LAC • LB • #45

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• Week 15 stats: 4 total tackles, 2 sacks, three tackles for a loss

The Chargers leaned on their defense to notch their 10th win of the season and complete the season sweep of the Kansas City Chiefs for the first time since 2013. Tuipulotu was a key force in pressuring the quarterback, posting two sacks in the winning effort. That brings him up to 12 sacks on the season, which has him tied for fifth most in the league.

James Cook

BUF • RB • #4

Att271

Yds1415

TD10

FL3

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• Week 15 stats: 22 carries, 107 yards rushing, 2 TDs; 2 catches, 4 yards receiving, 1 TD

Cook was once again the key outlet for Josh Allen as Buffalo mounted its 21-point comeback over the Patriots. The veteran back got the Bills on the board with his 5-yard touchdown catch from Allen, and scored the go-ahead touchdown in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. 

NFL Week 15 overreactions: Micah Parsons injury ends Packers' Super Bowl hopes? Josh Allen for MVP?

Tyler Sullivan

Notable Week 15 gaffes

Patriots blow 21-point lead

While we touched on Buffalo's comeback when discussing Allen above, let's not overlook the Patriots blowing a golden opportunity. A victory would've secured New England the AFC East crown, and it seemed as if the Patriots were well on their way to doing so after going up 21-0. However, those dreams of clinching the division in Week 15 were dashed after the offense largely went silent in the second half outside of TreVeyon Henderson's 65-yard touchdown run. Outside of that play, the second half drives for the Patriots consisted of two punts, an interception, and a turnover on downs. On the other side, Buffalo scored four touchdowns over their six second-half possessions. 

This was the second-largest blown lead at home in franchise history, and the Patriots became just the second team in NFL history to blow a lead of at least 21 points when entering on at least a 10-game winning streak. 

Panthers spoil opportunity in NFC South race

Carolina came into Sunday in possession of first place in the NFC South after the Buccaneers collapsed against the Falcons on Thursday night. A win would've created some much-needed breathing room between the Panthers and Tampa, with both head-to-head matchups still on deck over the final three weeks. 

For the bulk of the afternoon, it looked as if Carolina would secure the win over New Orleans, particularly after an opening touchdown drive to begin the third quarter and create a 10-point lead. In the fourth quarter, the Panthers led 17-10, and proceeded to watch as the Saints went on a 10-0 run, which included a 47-yard field goal with two seconds left in regulation to pull off the upset. 

With the loss, the Panthers dropped out of first place in the division and out of the playoff picture entirely for the moment. 

Tony Jefferson ejected after helmet-to-helmet hit, flips off crowd

Chargers safety Tony Jefferson was ejected during the fourth quarter of Sunday's win over the Kansas City Chiefs, after the veteran delivered a helmet-to-helmet on wide receiver Tyquan Thornton. That hit sparked a scuffle between the two AFC West rivals before the officials kicked Jefferson out of the game. 

As he was being escorted off the field, Jefferson was seen making an obscene gesture toward the crowd, giving them the middle finger. When speaking to reporters in the locker room postgame, Jefferson apologized for his actions, saying: "I was caught up in the moment. ... I'm classier than that." 

Joe Burrow throws brutal pick 6 in red zone

After a week when Joe Burrow made ominous comments about his future, the Bengals quarterback had one of the more dreadful interceptions of Week 15. With Cincinnati inside the 10-yard line and looking to cut into the 17-0 Baltimore lead, Burrow faced pressure and couldn't put his full force on a third-down throw. The ball then fluttered into the arms of Kyle Van Noy, who would momentarily race up the right sideline before handing the ball to safety Alohi Gilman, who took the turnover 84 yards to the house for a pick six. 

That was the final nail in Cincinnati's coffin, not just for Week 15, but the entire 2025 season, as they are now officially eliminated from playoff contention. 

Two-minute drills

Here are some of my quick-hitting takeaways/notes from Week 15: 

• This was a devastating slate in terms of injuries. While Patrick Mahomes' torn ACL will be the headliner, the injury that'll reshape the rest of the 2025 season is Micah Parsons reportedly tearing his ACL as well. On top of Green Bay losing to Denver, thus falling out of first place in the NFC North, losing Parsons likely erases their Super Bowl hopes. 
• While the Parsons injury will have a greater impact on this season with the Chiefs eliminated from playoff contention, Kansas City should look at Mahomes going down as a wake-up call. The Chiefs need to go through a roster reset. This 2025 roster felt tired for the bulk of the season, and they desperately need an injection of energy/talent. 
• Jordan Love withered down the stretch against Denver. Over his final six drives, he completed just six of his 16 pass attempts for 55 yards and two interceptions, giving him an 8.1 passer rating. 
• Matthew Stafford bolstered his MVP résumé during Sunday's win over the Lions, posting a 151.4 passer rating in the second half to help put them away and clinch a playoff spot. 
• Detroit's offense has so many weapons, but goes awfully silent at times. In the second half of Sunday's loss to L.A., the Lions managed just 125 yards of offense and 10 points. As the No. 8 seed and on the outside looking in on the playoffs, they have their backs firmly against the wall. 
• Seattle's win wasn't pretty as they were nearly upset by Philip Rivers, but I suspect the Seahawks were caught looking ahead to their showdown with the Rams on Thursday. Fortunately for them, they were still able to pull out the win, albeit barely. 
• The Rivers experiment wasn't as much of a disaster as I feared, but Indy is going nowhere fast with the 44-year-old under center. 
• I think the Saints may have found their quarterback in Tyler Shough. 
• We're not talking about the San Francisco 49ers enough. They are 10-4 and very much still in the conversation for first place in the NFC West and, in turn, the No. 1 seed. 
• After his quarterback was openly dejected this week and questioned his future, the Bengals being lifeless in a shutout loss to the Ravens should make Zac Taylor's seat extremely hot. 
• Jaxson Dart was once again evaluated for a concussion on Sunday. Whoever New York hires as its next coach needs to make Dart altering his running style priority No. 1. 
• The Las Vegas Raiders became the second team in NFL history to be shut out by both teams that made the Super Bowl the previous season. 
• J.J. McCarthy was still up-and-down in Week 15, but there was far more good than bad. The Vikings' young signal-caller is improving. 
• Shedeur Sanders threw three interceptions in Week 15 after tossing two picks over his first three starts. 
• Houston continues to look like one of the more complete teams in the AFC. 
• Dallas may mathematically still be alive in the playoff race, but that loss to the Vikings was the unofficial nail in its coffin. 
• Brady Cook's parents watching him throw his first career touchdown was maybe my favorite moment of Week 15.
• Clinched playoff berth: Los Angeles Rams and Denver Broncos
• Eliminated from playoff contention: Kansas City Chiefs, Cincinnati Bengals, New York Jets, Cleveland Browns, Tennessee Titans, Las Vegas Raiders, Washington Commanders, New York Giants, Minnesota Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, Arizona Cardinals, and New Orleans Saints.