1. Bills rank Top 5 in this latest Power Ranking
Another week of Power Rankings, another week of the Bills climbing the ranks. Buffalo remained at the same spot in some rankings, but ESPN has the Bills up one spot from No. 6 to No. 5 after their fourth-quarter comeback win against the Rams.
5. Buffalo Bills (3-0)
Week 3 ranking: 6
What we got wrong: Buffalo's defense would lead the way again while its offense would be somewhere between good and competent.
Sound the buzzer; this take is dead wrong. Through three weeks, the Bills sport the fourth-best offense in the NFL and the second-best passing attack. Josh Allen has looked like an MVP candidate in his first three games, willing the Bills to victory with fourth-quarter comebacks in each of his past two. Conversely, Buffalo's defense currently ranks 20th in yards allowed per game and 16th in points per game. It's been a weird year in Orchard Park. -- Marcel Louis-Jacques
2. Why Allen deserves to be in the MVP conversation
After Josh Allen's three-straight career games to start the 2020 season, his name has been mentioned by national media members when talking about early MVP candidates list. He's the only quarterback in NFL history to record 10 passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns in the first three games to start a season. He's also showing improvements in his accuracy. Allen's completion percentage is up about 12% from 58.8% in 2019 to 71% this season.
CBS Sports senior NFL columnist Pete Prisco thinks Allen deserves to be in the MVP conversation.
"He's in the MVP conversation, the legitimate MVP conversation," Prisco said. "And here's the other thing, right now that draft class, remember Lamar Jackson was the MVP last year. He's playing better than Lamar Jackson right now. Josh Allen is playing better football than Lamar Jackson. I'm not saying he's a better quarterback, but right now he's playing better.
"That team is tough to stop on offense, they have a lot of weapons outside. He looks so much more comfortable in the pocket spreading the football around, getting the ball out of his hands. There's still a blip or two, there's a couple of plays the other day where he holds the ball too long and took a sack. You can't do that in those situations, but he came out from underneath a 3rd-and-22 and a 2nd-and-25 I think in two separate scenarios. So that tells you what he is as a quarterback. They won the game they were leading 28-3, fell behind and he took them down the field to win. Josh Allen is in the MVP conversation."
The Bills rank No. 4 in CBS Sports' latest NFL Power Ranking.
3. Jon Gruden compares Josh Allen to John Elway
Raiders head coach Jon Gruden missed Sean McDermott by a couple years after Gruden's stint with the Eagles as an offensive coordinator form 1995 to 1997. Gruden went on to be the head coach of the Raiders from 1998 to 2001. McDermott started as scouting administrative coordinator for the Eagles in 1999 and moved over to a defensive assistant in 2002. Even though they didn't cross paths, Gruden thinks highly of the team McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane have put together in Buffalo.
"I think number one their head coach, McDermott, has done a great job, and Brandon Beane, the general manager, has done a good job of putting together a good young football team," Gruden said. "After that, the quarterback is eye-opening. He is a fun guy to watch. He can really throw the ball. He's got a great playing style. He's got a lot of John Elway's playing style. He can scramble, he's strong, he's tough. He's a big-time player.
"They've got an arsenal around him with the acquisition of Stefon Diggs from the Vikings, John Brown, they've got some guys that can really run. On defense they have a collection of players, they're very active up front. They do a good job of blitzing and a nice job of disguising their looks. It's no fluke that they're 3-0 and a playoff team."
