Tag: JOSH ALLEN
Eagles led the way with eight Pro Bowl selections
The Philadelphia Eagles, who have the best record in the NFL at 13-1, led all teams with eight Pro Bowl selections as the NFL announced on Wednesday night the AFC and NFC rosters for the 2023 Pro Bowl Games.
Thirty teams had at least one player selected to the 2023 Pro Bowl Games roster.
The players from each conference will compete in a series of exciting Pro Bowl Skills competitions throughout the week and the first-ever AFC vs. NFC Flag football games on Sunday, February 5, at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
The 2023 Pro Bowl Games will begin with both new and fan-favorite Skills and continue on Sunday with Skills and Flag games
There will be a lot of youth in the quarterback rooms in this Pro Bowl. Four of the six quarterbacks selected to the initial roster – Buffalo’s Josh Allen, Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow, Philadelphia’s Jalen Hurts(first time), and Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes – are age 27 or younger.
Seattle quarterback Geno Smith, who is having the best season of his career, was chosen for his first Pro Bowl in his 10th career season
The Dallas Cowboys and Kansas City Chiefs each had seven players chosen. Three additional teams – the Baltimore Ravens(six), Minnesota Vikings(five) and San Francisco 49ers (six) – each placed at least five players on the Pro Bowl roster.
Twenty-five of the players selected to the Pro Bowl today are first-time All-Stars.
Roster selections are determined by the consensus votes of fans, players and coaches. Each group’s vote counts one-third toward determining the 88 All-Star players.
Below are the complete Pro Bowl rosters for the NFC & AFC:
2023 PRO BOWL GAMES PLAYERS BY POSITION
(*First-time Pro Bowl selection; Bold/Italic: Starter)
AFC
OFFENSE (21)
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QUARTERBACKS (3) |
TIGHT ENDS (2) |
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Josh Allen, Buffalo |
Mark Andrews, Baltimore |
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Joe Burrow, Cincinnati |
Travis Kelce, Kansas City |
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Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City |
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TACKLES (3) |
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WIDE RECEIVERS (4) |
Terron Armstead, Miami |
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Davante Adams, Las Vegas |
Orlando Brown, Kansas City |
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Ja’Marr Chase, Cincinnati |
Laremy Tunsil, Houston |
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Stefon Diggs, Buffalo |
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Tyreek Hill, Miami |
GUARDS (3) |
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Joel Bitonio, Cleveland |
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RUNNING BACKS (3) |
Quenton Nelson, Indianapolis |
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Nick Chubb, Cleveland |
* |
Joe Thuney, Kansas City |
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Derrick Henry, Tennessee |
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Josh Jacobs, Las Vegas |
CENTERS (2) |
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* |
Creed Humphrey, Kansas City |
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FULLBACK (1) |
* |
Mitch Morse, Buffalo |
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Patrick Ricard, Baltimore |
DEFENSE (18)
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DEFENSIVE ENDS (3) |
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INSIDE/MIDDLE LINEBACKERS (2) |
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Maxx Crosby, Las Vegas |
C.J. Mosley, N.Y. Jets |
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Myles Garrett, Cleveland |
* |
Roquan Smith, Baltimore |
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Trey Hendrickson, Cincinnati |
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CORNERBACKS (4) |
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INTERIOR LINEMEN (3) |
* |
Sauce Gardner, N.Y. Jets |
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Chris Jones, Kansas City |
Xavien Howard, Miami |
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Jeffery Simmons, Tennessee |
Marlon Humphrey, Baltimore |
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* |
Quinnen Williams, N.Y. Jets |
* |
Pat Surtain II, Denver |
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OUTSIDE LINEBACKERS (3) |
FREE SAFETY (1) |
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Matthew Judon, New England |
Minkah Fitzpatrick, Pittsburgh |
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Khalil Mack, L.A. Chargers |
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T.J. Watt, Pittsburgh |
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STRONG SAFETIES (2) |
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Derwin James, L.A. Chargers |
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* |
Jordan Poyer, Buffalo |
SPECIALISTS (5)
PUNTER (1) |
RETURN SPECIALIST (1) | |||
* | Tommy Townsend, Kansas City | Devin Duvernay, Baltimore | ||
PLACEKICKER (1) | SPECIAL TEAMER (1) | |||
Justin Tucker, Baltimore | * | Justin Hardee, N.Y. Jets | ||
LONG SNAPPER (1) | ||||
Morgan Cox, Tennessee |
2023 PRO BOWL GAMES PLAYERS BY POSITION
(*First-time Pro Bowl selection; Bold/Italic: Starter)
NFC
OFFENSE (21)
QUARTERBACKS (3) | TIGHT ENDS (2) | |||
Kirk Cousins, Minnesota |
T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota |
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* |
Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia |
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George Kittle, San Francisco |
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* |
Geno Smith, Seattle |
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TACKLES (3) |
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WIDE RECEIVERS (4) |
Lane Johnson, Philadelphia |
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A.J. Brown, Philadelphia |
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Trent Williams, San Francisco |
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Justin Jefferson, Minnesota |
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Tristan Wirfs, Tampa Bay |
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CeeDee Lamb, Dallas |
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* |
Terry McLaurin, Washington |
GUARDS (3) |
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* |
Landon Dickerson, Philadelphia |
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RUNNING BACKS (3) |
* |
Chris Lindstrom, Atlanta |
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Saquon Barkley, N.Y. Giants |
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Zack Martin, Dallas |
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* |
Tony Pollard, Dallas |
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* |
Miles Sanders, Philadelphia |
CENTERS (2) |
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Jason Kelce, Philadelphia |
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FULLBACK (1) |
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Frank Ragnow, Detroit |
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Kyle Juszczyk, San Francisco |
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DEFENSE (18)
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DEFENSIVE ENDS (3) |
INSIDE/MIDDLE LINEBACKERS (2) |
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Nick Bosa, San Francisco |
* |
Demario Davis, New Orleans |
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Brian Burns, Carolina |
Fred Warner, San Francisco |
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Demarcus Lawrence, Dallas |
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CORNERBACKS (4) |
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INTERIOR LINEMEN (3) |
Jaire Alexander, Green Bay |
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Jonathan Allen, Washington |
Trevon Diggs, Dallas |
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Aaron Donald, L.A. Rams |
Darius Slay, Philadelphia |
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* |
Dexter Lawrence, N.Y. Giants |
* |
Tariq Woolen, Seattle |
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OUTSIDE LINEBACKERS (3) |
FREE SAFETY (1) |
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Micah Parsons, Dallas |
Quandre Diggs, Seattle |
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* |
Haason Reddick, Philadelphia |
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Za’Darius Smith, Minnesota |
STRONG SAFETIES (2) |
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Budda Baker, Arizona |
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* |
Talanoa Hufanga, San Francisco |
SPECIALISTS (5)
PUNTER (1) |
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RETURN SPECIALIST (1) |
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Tress Way, Washington |
* |
KaVontae Turpin, Dallas |
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PLACEKICKER (1) |
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SPECIAL TEAMER (1) |
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Jason Myers, Seattle |
* |
Jeremy Reaves, Washington |
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LONG SNAPPER (1) |
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* |
Andrew DePaola, Minnesota |
NFL playoff scenarios for Week 16
Things are starting to heat in the NFL, and as we get closer to the end of the season, more teams are beginning to clinch playoff spots.
The Chiefs(AFC West) and Bills have clinched in the AFC, and in the NFC, the Eagles, Vikings(NFC North), 49ers(NFC West), and Cowboys are all in.
Below are the playoff scenarios for Week 16 in the NFL:
AFC
CLINCHED:
Kansas City Chiefs – AFC West division title
Buffalo Bills – playoff berth
BALTIMORE RAVENS (9-5)
Week 16 – vs. Atlanta (5-9), Saturday, 1:00 PM ET, FOX
Week 17 – vs. Pittsburgh (6-8)
Week 18 – at Cincinnati (10-4)
Baltimore clinches playoff berth with:
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BAL win + MIA loss or tie + NE loss or tie OR
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BAL win + MIA loss or tie + NYJ loss or tie OR
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BAL win + NE loss or tie + NYJ loss or tie OR
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BAL tie + NE loss + NYJ loss OR
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BAL tie + NE loss + MIA loss + LAC win OR
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BAL tie + NE loss + MIA loss + NYJ tie OR
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BAL tie + NE loss + NYJ tie + LAC win OR
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BAL tie + NE tie + NYJ loss + MIA loss OR
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BAL tie + NE tie + NYJ tie + MIA loss + LAC win OR
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NE loss + NYJ loss + CLE loss or tie + LV loss or tie + TEN loss or tie + LAC win\
BUFFALO BILLS (11-3)
Week 16 – at Chicago (3-11), Saturday, 1:00 PM ET, CBS
Week 17 – at Cincinnati (10-4)
Week 18 – vs. New England (7-7)
Buffalo clinches AFC East division title with:
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BUF win or tie
OR
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MIA loss or tie
CINCINNATI BENGALS (10-4)
Week 16 – at New England (7-7), Saturday, 1:00 PM ET, CBS
Week 17 – vs. Buffalo (11-3)
Week 18 – vs. Baltimore (9-5)
Cincinnati clinches playoff berth with:
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CIN win or tie
OR
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NYJ loss or tie
LOS ANGELES CHARGERS (8-6)
Week 16 – at Indianapolis (4-9-1), Monday, 8:15 PM ET, ESPN
Week 17 – vs. L.A. Rams (4-10)
Week 18 – at Denver (4-10)
L.A. Chargers clinch playoff berth with:
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LAC win + LV loss or tie + NE loss + NYJ loss OR
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LAC win + LV loss or tie + NE loss + NYJ tie + MIA loss OR
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LAC win + LV loss or tie + NE tie + NYJ loss + MIA loss
NFC
CLINCHED:
Minnesota Vikings – NFC North division title
San Francisco 49ers – NFC West division title
Dallas Cowboys – playoff berth
Philadelphia Eagles – playoff berth
NEW YORK GIANTS (8-5-1)
Week 16 – at Minnesota (11-3), Saturday, 1:00 PM ET, FOX
Week 17 – vs. Indianapolis (4-9-1)
Week 18 – at Philadelphia (13-1)
N.Y. Giants clinch playoff berth with:
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NYG win + WAS loss + DET loss
OR
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NYG win + WAS loss + SEA loss OR
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NYG win + DET loss + SEA loss
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (13-1)
Week 16 – at Dallas (10-4), Saturday, 4:25 PM ET, FOX
Week 17 – vs. New Orleans (5-9)
Week 18 – vs. N.Y. Giants (8-5-1)
Philadelphia clinches NFC East division title with:
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PHI win or tie
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Philadelphia clinches homefield advantage and NFC’s lone first-round bye with:
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PHI win
OR
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PHI tie + MIN loss or tie
Jets’ Huff: ‘We’re not the same old Jets’
The New York Jets(6=3) showed the AFC East and the NFL that they can compete with the top teams as they defeated the Buffalo Bills(6-2) 20-17 Sunday at MetLife Stadium.
Many are shocked by this win for the Jets, but according to head coach Robert Saleh, he’s not surprised.
“Last week, we felt like we gave one away,” Saleh said after the win. “We practiced well this week. Not that practice ever translates, but I feel like it does. Last week wasn’t demoralizing to anyone. It was like, ‘damn, we are pretty good’ when you’re feeling like you should win football games. There wasn’t a coach or a person in that locker room that didn’t think we were going to be able to get this one done.”
Jets DE Bryce Huff, who had a huge strip-sack of Josh Allen on the Bills’ final drive, says this is not the same old Jets.
“We’re not the same old Jets,” he said. “We’ve got a group of guys here that love to work. We show up to work every day with the same mindset, just get better and go 1-0 on Sunday.”
One of the biggest reasons the Jets got the win was their defense. New York’s defense held the Bills to a season-low 17 points; they held one of the best quarterbacks in football, Allen, without a touchdown pass for the first time this season, and they intercepted him twice. In addition, they sacked Allen five times in this one, and the Pro Bowler completed only 52%(18/34) of his passes.
Coming into this game, the Jets were in the top ten in total defense and sacks, and after two picks on Sunday, they are now second in interceptions. One of the things the players believe makes this defense go is their relationship off the field.
“We really love each other,” Jets corner D.J. Reed said. “We hang out outside of football; everybody’s close-knit, just close, it’s family. I think that’s all we’ve got to go play for each other that hard.”
DE Jermaine Johnson added on the defense: “We really forget the business side of the NFL. It feels like we’re on a high school team, like that’s the camaraderie we got, and we’re just close. Like we hang out outside the building, we have fun when we’re in the building; it’s not just business to us. So, there’s a real-life connection here, and we display it. It’s getting better every Sunday.”
With the Jets trailing 14-10 in the third quarter, New York’s rookie corner Sauce Gardner intercepted Allen, which set up the Jets’ final touchdown and gave the team a lead late in the third. Gardner discussed what he saw on that interception.
“We were in a cover-two concept, to my side,” he said. “The receiver got outside of me, and they had a running back there sat in front of me. It was a running back or receiver; I don’t know. I just, I felt like I had a feel for Josh Allen and the throws he likes to make. So, I was just taking away the throws to the running back; I tried to time it up to make the play.”
Defense wins championships, but that’s not to say the Jets are a championship-caliber team; however, it says because of its defense, New York will be able to compete with some of the better teams in football, and they showed that on Sunday.
Jags’ Allen: ‘It feels good to be a part of a professional locker room’
In 2021, the Jacksonville Jaguars struggled from the start to the end; they won only three games and fired their head coach Urban Meyer 13 games into the season.
Meyer, who won big on the collegiate level, had many hiccups last season, including being seen on video dancing with another woman who was not his wife after staying back in Ohio following the team’s tough loss to Cincinnati.
In addition, former Jaguars K Josh Lambo accused Meyer of kicking him before practice last August, which Meyer denied.
However, Meyer, who many felt treated NFL players like college kids, is gone, and Doug Pederson, who won a Super Bowl with the Eagles in 2017, is the head guy in Jacksonville.
According to Jaguars LB Josh Allen, the team now has a “professional locker room.”
“It feels good to be a part of a professional locker room, not only in the locker room but also when you talk to the coaches,” Allen said. “It’s a professional setting. You have to hone in to the details. If you’re not listening to the details, it’s not getting onto you; it’s telling you what’s right and what’s wrong. As guys, as grown men, we’ve got to understand that, and he puts it in a way we can understand it and grow. He’s not getting on us, he’s letting us know what’s real, and he’s talking to us like grown men. With that, nothing but respect. We want to grow. We want to be great, and plus, he has the respect in his resume. We want to be an organization where we can get to that point someday. If we do things right and we listen, I feel like we can get to that point.”
Clearly, Jacksonville made a mistake when they hired Meyer. He was not the guy for the job. With the addition of Trevor Lawrence last season, there was a lot of excitement around the team, but incident after incident and report after report kept coming out of Jacksonville, none of which were pretty.
Fortunately for the team, it’s a new day and a new year.
Jaguars exercise fifth-year option on DE/OLB Josh Allen
The Jacksonville Jaguars have exercised the fifth-year option on DE/OLB Josh Allen, the team announced Thursday.
Allen will have a guaranteed salary of $11.5 million in 2023.
The 24-year-old is entering his fourth season with the team after originally being drafted by Jacksonville in the first round (seventh overall) in the 2019 draft. He has appeared in 40 games (26 starts) and has recorded 128 total tackles, including 25 tackles for loss and 20.5 sacks, five passes defensed, three forced fumbles and one interception.
Allen was voted as a team captain the last two seasons and was selected to the Pro Bowl in 2019. He was the first rookie in Jaguars history to be selected to the Pro Bowl.
In 2021, Allen recorded 15 starts, 71 tackles, including 12 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks, four passes defensed, one forced fumble, one interception and one fumble recovery. Following the team’s Week 9 victory against the Bills, Allen was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week after recording a career-high eight tackles, including two tackles for loss and 1.0 sack, one INT and one fumble recovery.
Jags’ Lawrence on win over Bills: ‘That’s one of the best defensive performances I’ve seen’
On any given Sunday, anything can happen in the NFL, which was on full display at TIAA Bank Field as the Jacksonville Jaguars hosted the Buffalo Bills(5-3).
Coming into this game against Jacksonville, Buffalo was averaging 29 points per game. However, the Bills’ offense did not score a touchdown against the Jaguars, and they would lose 9-6.
There was no touchdowns on Sunday as both defenses came to play.
The six points were the fewest points Buffalo has scored since the 2019 season. Bills QB Josh Allen threw for 264 yards but had no touchdowns and threw two picks. He also lost a fumble. In addition, the Jaguars sacked Allen four times and limited Buffalo to 72 rushing yards. It was the third consecutive game the Jaguars have allowed fewer than 100 rushing yards.
The Bills’ Josh Allen struggled on Sunday, but Jacksonville’s Josh Allen was big time.
Allen sacked Allen, marking the first time a player sacked a QB with the same first and last name in NFL history. Allen finished the game with a career-high eight tackles, including two tackles for loss and 1.0 sack. He also recorded the first interception of his career, becoming the second defensive lineman in franchise history to post at least 1.0 sack, one interception, and one fumble recovery.
“We’re not going nowhere,” Allens said postgame. “We’ve got — we’re going to build on this. I’m glad I’m not up here saying, oh, we’ve got to do better. No. When we’re on our stuff, we can be a really great defense, and it showed today. Our defensive line can go against any offensive line any time of the week, any offense, stop any run, stop any pass. We did what we needed to do.”
Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence, who was 18/26 for 118 yards, interception and left the game with an ankle injury but returned, was very impressed by the defense.
“I mean, it’s great. It speaks to the progress that we’re making,” Lawerence said. “I mean, our defense today, that’s one of the best defensive performances I’ve seen, and that’s a great offense. Obviously, Josh Allen, quarterback, and their wideouts and O-line, all those guys, they’re great players, and to see what our defense did, all the takeaways, the big stops on third and fourth down. I mean, it was just fun to watch.”
After losing their first five games, Jacksonville has now won two of three. This game was all about the defense, and the Jaguars’ defense shut down the Bills’ offense and led the team to victory.
Allen, Garrett, Tucker named AFC players of the week
Quarterback Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills, defensive end Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns and kicker Justin Tucker of the Baltimore Ravens are the AFC Offensive, Defensive and Special Teams Players of the Week for games played in Week 3 (September 23, 26-27).
OFFENSE: QB JOSH ALLEN, BUFFALO BILLS
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Allen completed 32 of 43 pass attempts (74.4 percent) for 358 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions for a 129.8 rating and added a rushing touchdown in Buffalo’s 43-21 victory over Washington.
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This is the seventh-career Offensive Player of the Week award for Allen:
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2018: Week 17
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2019: Week 11
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2020: Weeks 2, 9, 13, 15
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2021: Week 3
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-
Allen trails only Pro Football Hall of Famer Jim Kelly (10-time winner) for the most Offensive Player of the Week awards by a Buffalo quarterback.
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He joins Patrick Mahomes and Derrick Henry as the only players to win a Player of the Week in each of the past four seasons (2018-21).
DEFENSE: DE MYLES GARRETT, CLEVELAND BROWNS
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Garrett recorded seven tackles and a franchise-record 4.5 sacks in Cleveland’s 26-6 win over Chicago.
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This marks the second Defensive Player of the Week award for Garrett (Week 4, 2020).
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He becomes the first Brown to win multiple Defensive Player of the Week awards since defensive end Courtney Brown (Week 5, 2003 and Week 3, 2000).
SPECIAL TEAMS: K JUSTIN TUCKER, BALTIMORE RAVENS
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Tucker converted four of five field goals, including an NFL-record 66-yard field goal as time expired to defeat Detroit, 19-17.
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This is the 12th-career Special Teams Player of the Week award for Tucker:
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2013: Week 10, 12, 15
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2014: Week 3
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2015: Week 4, 8
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2016: Week 12
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2018: Weeks 3, 17
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2019: Weeks 5, 6
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2021: Week 3
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He is now tied with Jason Hanson (12) and Matt Prater (12) for the third-most all-time by a kicker. Only Adam Vinatieri (19) and John Carney (13) have earned the honor more.