NFL fans got a big surprise during Super Bowl week when Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen beat out First Team All-Pro QB Lamar Jackson for MVP.
But perhaps the bigger surprise than Allen winning was the sole fourth-place vote Jackson received from SiriusXM host Jim Miller. In what was widely regarded as a two-horse race for the award, Miller’s ballot was the only one on which Jackson finished outside the top two.
This week, Miller explained on his radio show Movin’ the Chains why he docked Jackson in favor of Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (how he helped Philly overcome injuries) and Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow (his clutch play down the stretch of the season).
“I sleep very good with how I voted,” the former Chicago Bears QB said per the New York Post. “Even if I voted for Lamar, Josh still would’ve won it.”
Miller’s claim is true. Flipping Jackson from fourth to second would not have altered the outcome of Allen’s win.
Interestingly, one voter also placed Allen outside the top two. That is Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reporter Tom Silverstein, who voted Burrow second over the eventual winner. The race overall was extraordinarily close, with Allen tallying 383 total voting points compared with 362 for Jackson.
After Jackson earned First Team All-Pro honors earlier in the offseason, most assumed he would take him his second straight MVP award and third total. That assumption led to its own news cycle, with NFL media debating whether Jackson was the rightful MVP and what the vote meant for Jackson’s legacy and the meaning of the award.
Instead, the more traditional narrative won out and Allen won his first MVP.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.