Given how loaded the AFC is with quarterbacks, there are always multiple top-tier passers who just are left on the couch deep in the playoffs, and for a few of them, the pressure is mounting big-time. At some point, something has to give, right?
Well, maybe not. Given how talented the AFC is overall with quarterbacks, it really could not be harder at this point for a team to get to the Super Bowl. There's also a small group of younger AFC quarterbacks who are looking to make some noise as well.
But the pressure is mounting for a notable trio in the AFC. Let's talk about those three passers here.
Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, and Joe Burrow could not be under more pressure in 2026
Josh Allen
There really isn't anything that Josh Allen has not accomplished, outside of making and winning the Super Bowl. Allen's playoff history is one of the more notable in the league, as Buffalo has made the playoffs seven years in a row and has not advanced past the AFC Championship Game.
They've won at least two playoff games in two separate seasons, and in four different seasons, Buffalo has won a singular game in the playoffs. Now already 30 years old, Allen isn't getting younger and isn't going to be as physically dominant as he ages into his 30s.
Winning games and making the playoffs only get harder as a player gets older, so while Allen hitting 30 years old may unofficially represent the start of the 'back nine' of his career, the pressure could not be higher.
Seven separate seasons of playoff exits without a Super Bowl appearance is just flat-out insane, and the more this goes on, the more people will doubt this team's ability to get over the hump.
Lamar Jackson
A two-time MVP, four-time Pro Bowler, and three-time All-Pro, Lamar Jackson is a future Hall of Famer and is already the best dual-threat quarterback of all-time, but the lack of playoff success is ridiculous.
Jackson is 3-5 as a starter in the playoffs with the Baltimore Ravens, having thrown 10 touchdowns against seven interceptions in those eight games. Not only do the Ravens simply not win a lot in the playoffs, but Jackson just hasn't played that well when the team gets into the postseason.
Jackson turns 30 years old next January, so he's also beginning to get up there in age, and his overall lack of success in the postseason is more magnified than Allen's, as, if nothing else, Allen tends to play well in the postseason.
But Jackson's insane regular-season success has really made the playoff drop-off that much more insane.
Joe Burrow
Joe Burrow's situation is a bit of a mixed bag, as the Cincinnati Bengals have made the playoffs just two times in the Burrow era, but in both seasons, they've advanced to the Super Bowl and the AFC Championship Game.
Burrow has a 5-2 career record in the playoffs with nine touchdowns and four interceptions. It's pretty obvious that Cincy is able to do some damage in the postseason, but they've not been back since 2022, and Burrow has battled a few notable injuries. Set to turn 30 this December, you get the sense that this offseason was a pivotal one for the front office.
The Bengals remade the defense in a clear effort to finally maximize this window and roster. If the Bengals fall short and don't make a deep run, could Burrow force his way out? Either way, not being in the playoffs three years in a row, given how talented the quarterback is, feels egregious.
Burrow has a borderline generational talent from the pocket, and both Allen and Jackson are both generational talents as well. This trio could not be under more pressure, as it seems like we're always asking ourselves if this is the year that one would win it all.
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