The top 5 fantasy football QB performances ever: Buffalo Bills' Josh Allen now tops the list

Leading NFL MVP candidate Josh Allen had the best fantasy performance by a quarterback ever in Week 14, logging an incredible six touchdowns (three through the air, three on the ground) en route to 51.88 fantasy points.

Not only is Allen’s monster day the best of the fantasy era, if you applied fantasy scoring rules to earlier pro football contests, Allen still tops the charts. The second-best historical QB performance was over six decades ago, in 1961, when Houston Oiler George Blanda would have produced a 49.72-point game. Coincidentally, his teammate Billy Cannon had the best-ever fantasy performance by a player at any position (68 points) during the same season.

To better contextualize Allen’s accomplishment for the modern era, here are the best fantasy performances by quarterbacks since 2004.

Rankings and statistics in this article are from Stathead.

45.24 points at Oakland Raiders

Nick Foles threw for seven — seven! — touchdown passes and 406 yards on 22-of-28 passing, supplementing 10 yards on the ground to lead the Eagles over the Raiders in 2013. In that 49-20 trouncing of Oakland, Foles tied the NFL record for passing touchdowns and told reporters, “A couple of people came up to me and said that I tied the record with seven touchdowns,” adding, “It’s a great honor. Hats off to our guys for doing a great job.”

Along with Foles, George Blanda, Drew Brees, Adrian Burk, Joe Kapp, Sid Luckman, Peyton Manning and Y.A. Tittle still hold the single-game record for passing TDs.

45.92 points vs. Denver Broncos

During a 49-23 rout of the Broncos, Aaron Rodgers threw four touchdowns and ran for two more, completing 29 passes for 408 yards to the tune of a 134.5 passer rating. He rushed for another 36 yards. One interception (and sitting out the Packers’ final two drives) kept him out of third place on this list.

The Denver Post’s Mike Klis likened Rodgers’ performance against the Broncos to playing “with a new toy.” He wrote, “Rodgers smiled and threw a touchdown pass. He smiled and ran for a touchdown. He smiled and smiled and smiled.”

Greg Jennings (103 receiving yards, one TD) and Jordy Nelson (91 receiving yards, one TD) led Green Bay receivers in this historic (in the fantasy sense) game. What the 2024 New York Jets wouldn’t do for 2011 regular-season Aaron Rodgers.

3. Peyton Manning, Denver Broncos, Sept. 5, 2013

46.28 points vs. Baltimore Ravens

In another seven-passing-touchdown performance, Peyton Manning and the Broncos crushed the Ravens 49-27 on “Thursday Night Football.” Manning threw for 462 yards and had a passer rating of 141.1. While he didn’t throw an interception, he was unable to pad his stats on the ground — because Peyton Manning — posting negative two yards, .

The late Demaryius Thomas ended the game with 161 yards receiving and two touchdowns, while Julius Thomas also had over 100 yards receiving and two TDs. The latter Thomas spoke highly of his QB, according to ESPN: “He’s phenomenal. To continue to come out every year and put that kind of performance on for us, it’s amazing.”

Manning made fantasy-quarterback history during his 15th season at 37 years old.

2. Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles, Nov. 15, 2010

49.32 points at Washington

The second Eagle on the list, Michael Vick had a career game against Washington, leading Philadelphia to a 59-28 win. In a game nicknamed “The Monday Night Massacre,” the under-center speedster rushed for 80 yards and two touchdowns and threw for 333 yards, adding another four touchdowns through the air. He was never intercepted and finished with a 150.7 passer rating. Vick’s first play of the game was an 88-yard touchdown pass to Philly great DeSean Jackson. He also played most of the contest (three quarters) without his signature visor due to rain. Ten years after the fact, Vick recalled the historic game and told The Athletic, “I could remember everything because I saw it clear. I didn’t see it behind the tint of a visor. I saw it in the right perspective. And I’m glad it happened.”

1. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills, Dec. 8, 2024

51.88 points at Los Angeles Rams

Josh Allen tops this list but he is the only quarterback here who didn’t secure a win. After trailing 38-21 entering the fourth quarter, Buffalo lost 44-42, partially due to the mishandling of timeouts and a lack of awareness on the final punt.

Head coach Sean McDermott called a costly timeout late in the game, and rookie Brandon Codrington let the final punt drop to the 1-yard line as time expired. Allen’s 342 yards passing and 82 yards rushing, Khalil Shakir’s 106 yards receiving with a touchdown, and Amari Cooper’s 95 yards receiving weren’t enough.

But the Bills are still 10-3, have clinched the AFC East and are looking toward the playoffs. In Week 15, Buffalo will face the Detroit Lions in what could be a precursor to a potential Super Bowl matchup. The Bills’ final two games are against the New York Jets and New England Patriots — two bottom-of-the-barrel opponents who should hope they don’t have to face the Josh Allen of Week 14.

And Allen is still most likely to be the 2024-25 MVP. For all the NFL/pop-culture fans out there, he also proposed to now-fiancé Hailee Steinfeld last month. All in all, Allen is having a career year, but I bet he wants this one back.

(Photo of Josh Allen: Katelyn Mulcahy / Getty Images)