There are no worries when it comes to the availability of Josh Allen for Sunday’s postseason matchup against the Jaguars.
Allen was a full participant in practice all week with his foot injury and has no game status, meaning he’s set to play against Jacksonville.
Allen has not missed any playing time with the injury he suffered during the Week 16 victory over the Browns.
However, it’s still unclear if the Bills will have their regular kicker. Matt Prater (right quad) did not participate on Friday and is listed as questionable. Buffalo signed kicker Matthew Wright to its practice squad earlier this week in case Prater is unavailable.
Running back Ty Johnson (ankle) is also questionable after he was limited on Friday. He did not participate on Wednesday or Thursday.
As noted by head coach Sean McDermott earlier on Friday, linebacker Terrel Bernard (calf), cornerback Maxwell Hariston (ankle), and safety Damar Hamlin (pectoral) are out. Receiver Joshua Palmer (ankle) and linebacker Shaq Thompson (neck) are questionable.
Additionally, Safety Cole Bishop (ribs), defensive end Joey Bosa (hamstring), defensive tackle DaQuan Jones (calf), tight end Dalton Kincaid (knee), defensive back cam Lewis (toe), linebacker Matt Milano (illness), safety Jordan Poyer (hamstring), and defensive tackle T.j. Sanders (shoulder) are all off the injury report and are expected to play.
The Bills will not have at least a couple of key defensive players for Sunday’s matchup against the Jaguars.
Head coach Sean McDermott has ruled out linebacker Terrel Bernard (calf), cornerback Maxwell Hariston (ankle), and safety Damar Hamlin (pectoral) for the contest.
Hamlin is returning from injured reserve and would have needed to be activated to the 53-man roster to play.
Bernard and Hariston were both sidelined for Wednesday and Thursday’s practices.
While kicker Matt Prater (right quad) did not practice on Wednesday, leading to the signing of Matthew Wright on the practice squad, he was a full participant on Thursday.
“Thought he did some good things yesterday,” McDermott said, via Mady Glab of the team’s website. “We’ll see where and how he trends heading into the weekend.”
Prater is not slated to kick on Friday, but that is his usual process two days before a game.
Receiver Joshua Palmer (ankle) and linebacker Shaq Thompson (neck) are set to be questionable. Running back Ty Johnson (ankle) did not practice on Wednesday or Thursday, but should see the field on Friday and the Bills will make a determination on his status from there.
“[We’ll] take a hard look at him today and see how he does,” McDermott said. “We’ll know more after practice.”
Buffalo’s full final injury report is due out later on Friday.
We used to post our regular-season awards one at a time. This year, we’re trying something different. Mainly because there’s too much other stuff going on.
All awards will be unveiled in one fell swoop. In one comprehensive post.
These aren’t my awards. The Associated Press doesn’t want any of the 50 voters to reveal their winners before the NFL Honors ceremony next month. We don’t need to wait that long to reveal the our own look at the folks who deserve recognition based on their performances during the 272-game season that ended four days ago.
So here they are, based on the input of the various PFT writers.
Offensive Rookie of the Year: Panthers receiver Tetairoa McMillan.
The first-rounder finished with 1,017 receiving yards in 17 games for the NFC South champs. If Saints quarterback Tyler Shough had started more than nine games, he may have run away with it.
Also receiving consideration was Buccaneers first-round receiver Emeka Egbuka (938 receiving yards).
In the end, the 1,000-yard season and presence on a playoff team gave McMillan the nod.
Defensive Rookie of the Year: Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger.
The first pick in round two emerged as the consensus top rookie on the defensive side of the ball, with 16 starts, 156 tackles, two interceptions, and 2.5 sacks.
Others considered were Seahawks defensive back Nick Emmanwori and Falcons linebacker James Pearce Jr.
Comeback Player of the Year: 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey.
Limited to four games in 2024 due to an Achilles injury that delayed his debut and a knee injury that ended his season, McCaffrey returned to full form in 2025. He had 2,126 yards from scrimmage (his third 2,000-yard performance) and came within 76 receiving yards of his second 1,000/1,000 rushing/receiving season.
McCaffrey’s ability to play every game helped keep the 49ers going amid an array of injuries to key players on both sides of the ball, fueling a 12-5 season that ended with a playoff berth.
Also receiving consideration were Lions defensive end Aidan Hutchinson, who had a career-high 14.5 sacks after suffering a broken leg in 2024, and Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, who finished with 4,552 passing yards a year after missing nine games with a serious hamstring injury.
Offensive Player of the Year: Falcons running back Bijan Robinson.
During the 2025 season, now-former Falcons coach Raheem Morris repeatedly called Robinson the best player in the NFL. Robinson led the league with 2,298 yards from scrimmage, and he proved to be a threat to score on any given snap. He had the longest run of the season — a 93-yarder — and 6.3 yards per touch.
Others receiving consideration were McCaffrey, Seahawks receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (league-high 1,793 receiving yards), and Rams receiver Puka Nacua (league-high 129 catches).
Defensive Player of the Year: Browns defensive end Myles Garrett.
This one was the easiest of all. Garrett broke the single-season sack record, with 23.0. He had a four-sack game against the Ravens, and a five-sack performance against the Patriots.
Given that the Browns rarely had a late lead, allowing Garrett to pin the proverbial ears back and chase a quarterback who was passing the ball over and over again, Garrett’s ability to generate so many sacks was even more impressive.
Others receiving consideration were Texans defensive end Will Anderson Jr. (12.0 sacks and the captain of the NFL’s best defense), and Broncos linebacker Nik Bonitto (14.0 sacks).
Assistant Coach of the Year: Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph.
The former Broncos head coach (from 2017-18) was essentially the head coach of the Denver defense, which continues to be among the NFL’s best. With Joseph, the Broncos secured the No. 1 seed in the AFC. That could earn Joseph another shot at a head-coaching job.
Others receiving consideration were Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, Texans defensive coordinator Matt Burke, and Jaguars defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile.
Coach of the Year: Jaguars coach Liam Coen.
This one was the closest call, between the first-year coach who took the Jaguars to the AFC South title (after only one year as Tampa’s offensive coordinator, following one year in 2022 as the Rams’ offensive coordinator) and Mike Vrabel, who immediately returned the Patriots to prominence. New England had an easy schedule (they didn’t pick it), and Vrabel’s track record made the overall turnaround less surprising.
Few expected Coen to take a team that had been 4-13 in 2024 to a division crown. Along the way, Coen sparked an eight-game winning streak after a 1-3 lull to hold off the Texans (who could be the best team in the entire conference) for the division crown.
Others receiving consideration were Bears coach Ben Johnson, Broncos coach Sean Payton, and Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald.
Executive of the Year: Seahawks G.M. John Schneider.
The decision to trade quarterback Geno Smith and pivot to quarterback Sam Darnold was the boldest move the long-time Seattle G.M. made. But Schneider has otherwise put together a roster that is among the best in the league, helping to lay the foundation for a team that won the top seed in the NFC, despite stiff competition in the NFC West.
Others receiving consideration were Jaguars G.M. James Gladstone, Bears G.M. Ryan Poles, and Patriots executive V.P. of player personnel Eliot Wolf.
MVP: Patriots quarterback Drake Maye.
Maye or Stafford? Stafford or Maye?
Anyone can pick a stat and make the case for either Maye or Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford. Stafford had the NFL’s most passing yards, with 4,707, and passing touchdowns, with 46. Maye had the highest average per attempt, with 8.93 (more than a full yard more than Stafford), and the highest passer rating in the league, at 113.5.
Here’s one that helped tip the scale toward Maye: He had an eight-game run with 200 or more passing yards and a passer rating of 100 or higher. Only three players in NFL history had ever done that before — Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, and Peyton Manning. Each won the MVP award when they accomplished that feat. Maye became the youngest to ever do it, at 23.
Stafford likely would have been our MVP, if the Rams hadn’t blown a 16-point lead with 13:34 to play against the Seahawks in Week 16. Five fourth-quarter drives by the Rams after that moment yielded zero points.
That same weekend, Maye engineered a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown drives against the Ravens, turning a 24-13 deficit into a 28-24 win. The first covered 73 yards. The second started at the New England 11.
In those two prime-time games, the Rams lost both the No. 1 seed and the NFC West crown — and the Patriots moved a massive step closer to ending Buffalo’s five-year hammerlock on the AFC East.
Would it have been an easier call if the Patriots had secured the No. 1 seed? Yes. Still, Maye’s statistical achievements coupled with a division title and the No. 2 seed in the AFC (versus the Rams at No. 5) were enough to earn Maye the MVP title in only his second NFL season.
Josh Allen remains on track to be just fine to start Sunday’s wild card matchup with the Jaguars.
Allen was again listed as a full participant on Buffalo’s Thursday injury report after he was full on Wednesday, too.
Allen has been dealing with a foot injury suffered during Buffalo’s Week 16 victory over the Browns. He was still able to play against Philadelphia in Week 17 but the club rested him in last week’s win over the Jets.
Linebacker Matt Milano (illness) returned on Thursday as a full participant after he did not participate on Wednesday.
Kicker Matt Prater (right quad) was also upgraded to a full participant after he was a DNP on Wednesday. Buffalo had added Matthew Wright to the practice squad as insurance if Prater is unable to kick.
Defensive tackle T.J. Sanders (shoulder) was added to the report as full.
Linebacker Terrel Bernard (calf), running back Ty Johnson (ankle), and receiver Joshua Palmer (ankle) remained non-participants.
Safety Damar Hamlin (pectoral), defensive tackle DaQuan Jones (calf), tight end Dalton Kincaid (knee), safety Jordan Poyer (hamstring), and linebacker Shaq Thompson (neck) all remained limited.
Safety Cole Bishop (ribs), defensive end Joey Bosa (hamstring), and defensive back Cam Lewis (toe) all remained full.
Jaguars kicker Cam Little kicked his second-longest field goal of the season on Sunday. Which also happened to be the second-longest field goal in NFL history.
Little’s 67-yard field goal on Sunday followed his 68-yarder in November, highlighting a tremendous season for him. Today he was named the AFC Special Teams Player of the Month.
Little is 11-for-11 on field goals and 21-for-21 on extra points since the beginning of December, and he has the NFL’s longest active streak with 20 consecutive made field goals. Little is also the youngest player in NFL history with 50 career field goals, reaching that mark at age 22 years, 119 days.
In August, Little hit a 70-yard field goal in a preseason game, which is the longest field goal ever made in any football game at any level of the sport. Up next perhaps he’ll set a new NFL record for the longest postseason field goal. The current record of 58 yards, first set by Pete Sotyanovich in 1990 and later matched by Graham Gano in 2017, seems almost too easy for Little and the other kickers who made 60-yard field goals commonplace in 2025.
