Josh Allen Earns Player of the Week for Putting Bills on His Back Against Bengals

Allen scored four touchdowns, three in the second half, in Buffalo’s 39-34 comeback win over the Cincinnati Bengals Sunday.

Josh Allen #17 of the Buffalo Bills directs the offense against the Cincinnati Bengals during the second quarter at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, New York on Dec. 7, 2025 Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is the AFC Player of the Week, the NFL announced Dec. 10. This is the 18th time he has won the award, tied for fifth-most in NFL history.

Down 21-11 at halftime, Allen put the team on his back, scoring three touchdowns in the second half and four overall to lead the Bills to a 39-34 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals on a snowy Dec. 7. His play earned him his third Player of the Week honor this season.

Allen led the Bills all the way to the Cincinnati 10-yard line on Buffalo’s first possession, but was bottled up on a read option on third down. The Bills were forced to kick a field goal. He led the offense to the same spot in the second quarter; on 4th and 4, Allen rolled to his right, danced around pressure, and threaded the needle to wide receiver Khalil Shakir; he found tight end Dawson Knox in the back of the end zone for a 2-point conversion to make it a 14-11 ball game.

In the third quarter, Allen marched the offense down the field behind a 16-yard run to convert a 3rd and 5. Then a big-time catch and run by running back James Cook on 3rd and 2. On 2nd and goal from the Cincinnati 6, he found tight end Dalton Kincaid on a choice route for a touchdown to cut the Bengals’ lead to 21-18.

Midway through the fourth quarter, down 28-18, Allen climbed the pocket to escape a blitz, then tucked the ball away and took off into the open field for a 40-yard touchdown run, which set the franchise record for longest touchdown run by a quarterback during the regular season.

Buffalo cornerback Christian Benford intercepted a pass by Cincinnati QB Joe Burrow and returned it for a touchdown. On the next possession, Burrow had a pass tipped at the line of scrimmage and picked off by edge rusher A.J. Epenesa.

On 4th and goal from the Bengals’ 3-yard line, Allen bided his time in the pocket off a play-action fake before finding TE Jackson Hawes alone in the end zone to put the Bills up 39-28. The Bengals scored, but missed a 2-point try, and the Bills held the ball as the clock expired.

Allen finished the day 22 of 28, passing for 251 yards and 3 touchdowns. He added 9 carries for 78 yards and his long touchdown run.

It was his 50th career game with touchdowns both in the air and on the ground, an NFL record. He also became the first player in NFL history with at least 250 passing yards, 75 rushing yards, 3 passing TDs, and a rushing score in two career games.

Allen’s performance kept the Bills firmly in the Wild Card race in a tight battle for the final couple of spots. Had they lost, the Bills would have fallen to 8-5 and been leapfrogged by the Houston Texans—whom they lost to on Thursday Night Football last month—for the 6-seed in the playoffs.

With the win, they sit at 9-4 and fend off Houston for at least the rest of the week.

Allen and the Bills will face a big test on Dec. 14 as they take on the New England Patriots on the road.

The Pats stole a win in Orchard Park in October, and the Bills could suddenly threaten New England for the AFC East title if they win in Foxborough.

Buffalo would then need to win their final three games: a trip to the rebuilding Cleveland Browns, followed by home games against the struggling Philadelphia Eagles and the AFC East-bottoming New York Jets. The Patriots would need to lose one of their last three: a road game against the Baltimore Ravens, who are fighting for their playoff lives; a visit to the Jets; or a home game against the division-rival Miami Dolphins.