Josh Allen's historic touchdown record in jeopardy with one game left

Buffalo Bills' quarterback Josh Allen scores touchdowns at a historic rate. He just became the fastest and youngest player to reach 300+ career touchdowns. But his unprecedented streak of seasons with 40+ total touchdowns may come to an end in 2025.

Allen currently sits at 39 total touchdowns this season (25 passing and 14 rushing) following a two-touchdown performance against the Eagles on Sunday. With one game remaining, Allen will need to find the endzone through the air or on the ground to reach 40.

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The reason? The Bills may be inclined to rest their starters in Week 18.

Allen's 40 TD streak

Allen first reached 40 touchdowns in his initial breakout season in 2020, including a career-high 37 passing touchdowns along with eight on the ground and one receiving score. 2021 and 2022's stats looked extremely similar, with 36 passing and six rushing touchdowns in '21 and 35 passing and seven rushing touchdowns in '22.

Starting in 2023, Allen began relying heavily on his rushing touchdowns to help him reach the mark, with a single-season QB-record 15 rushing TDs along with 29 passing scores.

Last season saw 28 passing and 12 rushing scores, along with a receiving score (from himself) against the 49ers. Through 16 games of the 2025 season, Allen's 25 passing scores are the lowest mark for him since his sophomore season in 2019, but his 14 rushing scores are the second-highest mark of his career.

Unprecedented achievement

Last season was Allen's fifth consecutive 40-touchdown season, extending his current streak for the most consecutive seasons hitting that threshold. The only other QB to achieve this in more than two-straight years is Drew Brees during a three year stretch from 2011-2013.

MORE: Josh Allen's 'Madden' level TD production results in another historical first

If Allen can extend his streak to a sixth year, he would tie Aaron Rodgers for the most seasons with 40+ total touchdowns, with Allen's impressively all happening consecutively.

In addition to Rodgers, Allen, and Brees, the only other QBs to reach this threshold multiple times in their career include Tom Brady four times, Patrick Mahomes three times. Joe Burrow, Lamar Jackson, Daunte Culpepper, Brett Favre, and Steve Young all achieved it twice.

Week 18 outlook

There is a strong possibility that the Bills rest their starters in the last game of the season against the Jets, given that the AFC East title is officially out of reach. Will Sean McDermott value the health of the roster over playoff seeding, especially with a win not even guaranteeing that the Bills improve their positioning?

Similar to last season's final match of the season, a Jets upset win would still have a silver lining for the Bills—a worse draft pick for one of their division rivals.

Allen being just short of a somewhat arbitrary threshold also parallels James Cook in Week 18 last season, entering the game just short of 1,000 rushing yards on the season. Needing 19 yards to surpass 1k, Cook played 15 offensive snaps, seeing 10 carries for 28 yards and a touchdown before leaving the game. Could the Bills do something similar with Allen to preserve his streak?

Josh Allen and James Cook — Nov 20, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Buffalo Bills running back James Cook III (4) celebrates with quarterback Josh Allen (17) after scoring a touchdown against the Houston Texans in the first quarter at NRG Stadium. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

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