Getty Josh Allen celebrates a touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers.

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen scored a touchdown on Sunday so unusual, even Patrick Mahomes was left in disbelief.

In the third quarter of Buffalo’s Sunday night showdown against the San Francisco 49ers with the Bills driving deep in 49ers territory, Allen threw a short pass to wide receiver Amari Cooper that appeared to be stopped short.

But Allen scooted behind Cooper, taking a lateral from the veteran receiver and rumbling seven yards for a touchdown.

https://x.com/SharpFootball/status/1863422326173213092

The play drew some big reactions online, with Mahomes among those sharing his praise for the Bills quarterback.

“That was lit!” Mahomes shared in a post on X, adding a laughing emoji and pair of fire emoji.

Josh Allen’s Unusual Touchdown

The touchdown will go down as something of an anomaly in NFL history. Because Allen threw the pass and ultimately brought it over the goal line, it was scored both as a touchdown pass for Allen and a touchdown reception for Allen — from himself.

This is just the fourth time in NFL history that a player has both caught and received the same touchdown. As Josh Dubow of The Associated Press noted, it was just the second time that feat has happened in the last quarter century.

“Josh Allen becomes the 2nd player since 2000 to get credit for a TD pass and a TD catch on the same play,” Dubow shared in a post on X. “Marcus Mariota did it when he caught his own deflected pass for a TD in a 2017 wild-card win vs Chiefs.”

Allen later rushed for a touchdown, making him the first quarterback in NFL history to achieve the unusual feat.

“Josh Allen is the FIRST QUARTERBACK EVER to have a passing touchdown, rushing touchdown and receiving touchdown in the same game,” noted reporter Nick Veronica of News 4 Buffalo in a post on X. “He is the 14th player to achieve the feat and 7th in the Super Bowl era.”

Josh Allen’s MVP Buzz

The performance against the 49ers helped Allen earn some major MVP buzz, especially after completing his touchdown trifecta.

Bleacher Report’s Jake Rill wrote earlier in the week that Allen had taken the lead in betting odds for the MVP award, predicting he could seize control over the final stretch of the season.

“Allen has had a bit of a tough stretch in recent weeks, having thrown all five of his interceptions over his past four games,” Rill wrote. “He has also thrown only one touchdown pass over the past two weeks. But it would be a big surprise if Allen doesn’t start putting up bigger numbers again in the near future. Once that happens, his NFL MVP case will be even stronger.

“Although other quarterbacks and Barkley will keep the MVP conversation close, Allen remains a front-runner for a reason. And he’ll get the job done over the next six weeks.”

Allen didn’t have a chance to add to his stats on Sunday, as he was pulled early in the fourth quarter in favor of backup Mitch Trubisky.

Nathan Dougherty is a sports reporter covering the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions and Miami Dolphins. Previously he wrote for the Rochester Business Journal and served as the assistant editor of athletic trade magazines Coaching Management, Athletic Management and Training & Conditioning. He is based out of Rochester, New York, and loves everything football. More about Nathan Dougherty