Should Fantasy Football Managers Panic Over Josh Allen?
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The Buffalo Bills suffered a surprising 23-19 loss to the Houston Texans in Week 12, despite the absence of star quarterback C.J. Stroud. Reigning MVP Josh Allen struggled in the primetime matchup throwing two interceptions in just his second game of the season without a touchdown through the air, or on the ground.
The Bills previously defeated the New York Jets 30-10 in Week 2, despite a scoreless day for the star quarterback. Unfortunately in Week 12, Buffalo’s offense couldn’t overcome two crucial turnovers from its superstar in his lowest-scoring fantasy football effort of the season.
Allen’s TNF performance has raised concerns from fantasy owners, who have relied on his stout production for much of the season. Despite a tough matchup against Houston, Allen was coming off a season-high 44.7-point performance on the back of six total touchdowns versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 11, elevating expectations this week.
While his struggles have already raised negative chatter, fantasy owners don’t need to hit the panic button on Allen just yet. Here’s why the star quarterback is poised for an imminent bounce-back effort.
Fantasy Football Owners Shouldn’t Panic About Josh Allen
Prior to his lowly Week 12 performance, Allen was riding a streak of four consecutive games with at least 20.0 points of fantasy production, a mark he’s eclipsed in eight of the team’s 11 games this season. Entering Week 13, Buffalo will set its sights on the Pittsburgh Steelers, which will present a favorable fantasy matchup for the superstar signal-caller.
While a shoulder injury may call his status into question early in the week, several extra days of rest should allow the quarterback to suit up in Week 13, as there’s no real concern over his injury designation within the organization so far.
The Steelers enter Week 12 ranked as the 32nd-ranked pass defense in the NFL, having faced their struggles versus Allen in the past. Through four regular season meetings, Allen is 3-1 versus Pittsburgh, scoring touchdowns in every game against the Steelers to this point of his career, something that projects to continue in Week 13.
Following Pittsburgh, Allen will prepare for another favorable showdown versus a lowly Cincinnati Bengals defense in Week 14, a unit that ranks near the bottom of the NFL in almost every statistical category. Allen will see plenty of scoring opportunities over his next two games, presenting ideal individual matchups for immediate rebound performances in fantasy.
Given his fantasy success throughout the season, fantasy owners should remain optimistic on the Bills’ star quarterback. He remains one of the top quarterbacks in fantasy despite his quiet Week 12 performance, and is still considered a must-start option as the fantasy playoffs rapidly approach.
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Ethen Hutton is a MLB, WNBA, College, and Fantasy contributor at On SI. Previously, he's covered the NBA, WNBA and NFL for Sportskeeda. Hutton is also a passionate fantasy football player and an immense music lover.