Josh Allen fans should be intrigued by Lamar Jackson being a finalist for Offensive Player of the Year

Could Josh Allen’s MVP case be in front of us?

The NFL announced finalists for their year-end award on Thursday, and we covered all of the Bills nominations, including Josh Allen being a finalist for MVP. One award we didn’t talk about was the Offensive Player of the Year, that’s because no Bills were nominated.

You know who was a finalist for Offensive Player of the Year? Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson.

It’s an intriguing note for this year since typically voters go with a different player for MVP and Offensive Player of the Year. OPOTY usually goes to a player who accumulates a lot of stats on offense, and typically at a position other than quarterback.

It could signal that some voters went with Josh Allen for their top MVP vote and gave Jackson their top vote for OPOY in a way to split the difference.

Of course, the last QB to win the award was in 2018, when Patrick Mahomes won in the same year he took home the MVP. So maybe I’m reading too much into this.

Here are the finalists for Offensive Player of the Year:

• Philadelphia Eagles RB Saquon Barkley
• Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow
• Cincinnati Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase
• Baltimore Ravens RB Derrick Henry
• Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson

We will find out who wins at NFL Honors the night before the Super Bowl.

What does it mean to be a finalist for Offensive Player of the Year?

Unlike some awards outside of football, where you narrow down the voting with initial ballots and then vote again when finalists are determined, all of these votes have already been cast. The finalists are just the people the NFL is going to invite to the NFL Honors Awards show. They are the top five vote-getters for the award.

When is voting on the Offensive Player of the Year?

Voting for the NFL awards takes place at the end of the regular season, so playoffs and Super Bowl performance are not taken into account.

What is the voting process for Offensive Player of the Year?

For the last few years, voters have been asked to rank their top picks for each award one through five. A first-place vote is worth 10 points, second place is five points, third place is three points, fourth place is two points, and fifth place is one point. The numbers are totaled at the end with first-place votes being a tiebreaker.

When will we find out who won Offensive Player of the Year?

We find out the winners of the NFL awards at the NFL Honors presentation on February 6th, the Thursday before the Super Bowl. The ceremony will air on Fox and NFL Network at 9 p.m. Eastern.