Count Booger McFarland among those who believe Josh Allen did not deserve to win the NFL MVP. The longtime ESPN football analyst joined The Dan Patrick Show on Friday following Allen’s win over Lamar Jackson at the NFL Honors ceremony. He asserted that Allen’s award highlights how “feelings” can dominate voters’ decisions from year to year.
“I thought it was wrong. You can make a case that Josh Allen did more with less… but if Lamar Jackson won the MVP last year, this year he’s been probably one-and-a-half times better than he was then,” McFarland said. “When you have humans voting on this award, we’re subjected to feelings. And those feelings are that Jackson has won two, so we’ve gotta give Josh one.”
McFarland noted Jackson’s improvements compared to last season and his efficiency in managing turnovers as reasons for the Ravens star deserving the MVP. While Allen has compensated for the Buffalo Bills’ lack of receiving threats and defensive talent to maintain their lead in the AFC East, the MVP conversation has increasingly been shaped by narratives this season. Beyond any sympathy voters might feel for Allen, there’s a prevailing perception that Jackson was undeserving of a third trophy due to his postseason underperformance.
Adding a layer of skepticism around Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, combined with the overlooked contributions of non-quarterbacks and the voters’ devaluation of players like Joe Burrow—whose teams missed the playoffs—made Allen’s story the least complicated and most appealing.
Josh Allen wins his first NFL MVP award. 🏈🏆pic.twitter.com/st6vHtkJ1a
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 7, 2025
“It just goes to show you how us as humans, and I get it, when we vote on awards, our feelings get involved,” McFarland added. Beneath the surface, he critiques voters for prioritizing emotions over facts—a significant issue for sports analysts. Although McFarland himself lacks an MVP vote, many of his ESPN colleagues do.
Among the voting contingent at the Worldwide Leader, it appears that only Tedy Bruschi and Mina Kimes agree with McFarland that Jackson was the MVP this season.
