The Bills are back at home for a Week 16 matchup against the New England Patriots. Buffalo will only face AFC East opponents for the rest of the way with three games left in the regular season.

Here are five things to follow this week as we head into Sunday's game.

👍1. Analysts weigh in on Allen's MVP-caliber season

Everybody's eyes are on Bills quarterback Josh Allen after his last few performances. Allen has set the NFL on fire with at least four touchdowns in three straight games. The QB has 10 touchdowns, 854 offensive yards, no turnovers and no sacks in the last two games.

National analysts weighed in on what they've thought of Allen's seventh NFL season and why they believe he should be the 2024 MVP.

Pat McAfee: "Josh Allen is by far the greatest football player on earth right now," McAfee said on The Pat McAfee Show. "No questions asked. Everything he's doing is awesome. He's not turning the ball over. This was always the potential Josh Allen that we thought he could be…this guy is igniting not only the Buffalo Bills but football."

Dan Orlovsky: "The MVP race is over, folks," Orlovsky said on Get Up. "In 2024, 17 is running away with this and that's saying a lot because Saquon Barkley and Lamar Jackson are having tremendous seasons. What this dude is doing right now is absolutely unbelievable…400 yards, four touchdowns, no picks, no fumbles, no sacks, he's done it in back-to-back weeks."

Colin Cowherd: "Josh Allen is the most talented quarterback I've ever seen. I'll die on that hill," Cowherd said on The Herd. "…I've never seen a quarterback this good. Size and arm mobility, A+. It's a little LeBron (James) in his prime, it's a little (Shohei) Ohtani, it's a little Tiger (Woods). Where you can put the best athletes in the world up there and he's a notch above that."

Mike Greenberg: "I don't think I've ever seen a quarterback play better than Josh Allen is playing right this minute," Greenberg said on Get Up. "(Tom) Brady at times has felt completely unstoppable, Peyton Manning at times has felt unstoppable, Patrick Mahomes at time has felt unstoppable…in his last two games Josh Allen has accounted for 10 touchdowns and zero turnovers, 854 yards of total offense…he is an avenger. He is unstoppable."

🏃2. Offense hitting their stride

Buffalo's offense has hit its stride since the Week 12 bye. The Bills are averaging 41.67 points per game over the last three weeks. That puts them at the top of the NFL and the next best team is averaging more than five points less per game than Buffalo (Denver: 36).

Bills quarterback Josh Allen has led Buffalo to this offensive output in each of the last three weeks totaling 14 touchdowns and 1,020 total yards of offense. Allen's had no turnovers and zero sacks over the last three contests as well.

Buffalo's offensive coordinator Joe Brady thinks there's always room for improvement but credits the offense's chemistry as a reason for these high scoring games.

"I think there's a chemistry in the locker room and the guys love being around each other," Brady said. "It starts with our quarterback. There's a selfless mindset and the guys really don't care about anything besides winning. And so, whatever their role is on that particular play, they care more about that and care more about that person, 'Hey, if I got to run, it opens it up for this guy to get this catch. I'm going to do it for him because I love him.'"

In addition to the chemistry, the Bills have also been tough to stop on the ground in the last three games. Buffalo's averaging 173.3 rushing yards per game, good for third most over that span. Bills head coach Sean McDermott thinks that area of the game is critical to the team's success as they close out the season.

"That's huge," McDermott said. "That's never taken for granted. It's earned every week with the mindset up front on both sides of the ball…it's so important to our success."

The offensive line deserves a lot of credit as well because they're the ones who are keeping the pocket clean for Allen to rip apart defenses. The group hasn't allowed a sack in the last four games and only 13 this year, the lowest in the league.

"They are playing together as five and they're playing confident," Brady said. "You saw against Detroit we were able to be two-dimensional because of those guys. And look, we have the best player in the world at quarterback but when our offensive line is playing together, they set the tone. We go as they go."

💪3. How the defensive line can build off Week 15

Buffalo's defensive line had a game to remember against the Lions in Week 15. The defense totaled 25 quarterback pressures (23.8%) on Detroit's quarterback Jared Goff. That number was the most in the league last week.

Defensive tackle Ed Oliver led the way and was a big factor on Sunday. The DT registered 10 quarterback pressures on 42 pass rush snaps, the most by a defensive tackle this season.

"I really liked how they played in the run game," McDermott said. "We had some really good rushes as well in the pass game, especially when it turned to turned to some early third downs. I thought later in the game, the connection of the of the rush and the coverage could have been better, the detail and things, but that's all growth for us…the important piece is that we continue to improve in that area."

The Bills will face a Patriots offense who's averaging just 17 points per game (2^nd lowest), 292.5 total yards per game (3^rd lowest) and is only scoring touchdowns in the red zone 46.3% of the time (3^rd lowest).

Defensive coordinator Bobby Babich believes it's important for the defensive line to build off last week's performance and get into a good groove before the end of the regular season.

"I think the biggest thing is we stay in the process that we know for us works," Babich said. "I tell the guys all the time that anything you think has worked for you within in that routine or process, bottle that up and make sure you store it and take it with you. No matter the opponent, no matter the week of the season, once we find our groove, we need to stay in that groove, and that's very important."

🏈4. Sean McDermott vs. Rookie quarterbacks

Buffalo will face their first rookie quarterback of the season in New England's quarterback Drake Maye.

Since Sean McDermott became Buffalo's head coach in 2017, the Bills have faced rookie quarterbacks 11 times and have an 8-3 record. In those games, McDermott's defense has allowed an average of 13.3 points per game, a 58.5% completion percentage, a 60.8 passer rating and has forced an average of two takeaways per game. In addition to that, they've allowed a 22.1% conversion rate on third down, a 42.3% efficiency rate in the red zone and an average of 4.4 yards per play.

All of those stats rank top 10 in the league. They have allowed the NFL's lowest yards per play (4.4), passing touchdowns (5) and third down conversion rate (22.1%) over that span.

While Maye is quarterbacking a team that has struggled to find their footing, the rookie has shown some promise. Maye ranks top 10 in completion percentage (68.5%). The QB has showcased his arm talent and ability to extend plays with his feet, giving New England hope for the future.

5. 3 games left vs. the AFC East

The Bills have three games left on their regular season schedule before the playoffs begin on Saturday, January 11.

All three remaining games are against the division, which the Bills have already clinched. Buffalo has two-straight home games against the Patriots and Jets before finishing the regular season out on the road against the Patriots in Week 18.

The No.1 seed is still reachable for Buffalo. They must win out and the Chiefs need to drop two of their last three. According to the New York Times Playoff Predictor, the Bills have a 35% chance at a round 1 bye and an 18% chance at a Super Bowl appearance.