Week 6 breakdown: Josh Allen vs. Maxx Crosby and the keys to pivotal AFC clash

The Raiders may have to abandon their usual four-man rush and turn up the pressure to slow Allen and Buffalo's play-action attack

Oct 16, 2026 at 8:35 am ET • 3 min read

Josh Allen is fresh off making NFL history in Buffalo's 37-34 overtime win over the Los Angeles Rams in Week 5. He became the first quarterback to average 10-plus yards per pass attempt (11.1) and 10 yards per carry (12.1), and he stuffed the statsheet with 210 yards passing 121 yards rushing and two total touchdowns. 

So what will he do in the Bills' (3-2) return to action the Raiders? That depends on the success rate he has when Buffalo runs their deadly under-center play action game, featuring himself and James Cook, against five-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Maxx Crosby. 

Entering Week 6, Allen is utilizing under-center play action on 25.5% of his dropbacks in 2026, the second-highest rate in the NFL, trailing only Sam Darnold (25.5%), according to the NFL's Next Gen Stats. On those plays, Allen is completing 64.5% of his throws, just below the league average rate of 65.2%, while averaging 9.0 yards per attempt, the eighth-most in the NFL. The greater danger arises when he takes matters into his own hands with his legs. When he has tucked the ball and run, Allen has scrambled six times for 65 yards and a touchdown. When combining the passing and the rushing, Allen has a 57.1% success rate on under-center play-action dropbacks, the fifth-highest in the NFL entering Week 6, per the league's Next Gen Stats. 

How has the Raiders' defense handled defending under-center play-action this season? Not great, allowing a 75% completion percentage (15 of 20) and two touchdowns on under-center play-action passes while giving a single scramble for 36 yards (fifth-most allowed on such scrambles. 

So, how can Las Vegas tilt the scale back in its favor? Turning up the heat with the blitz. Allen has been around league average overall when blitzed this season, with a 93.2 passer rating against the blitz, 15th in the NFL. When blitzed in under center play-action scenarios, the efficiency is relatively the same among his peers: Allen has a 115.5 passer rating, which ranks 13th in the league. 

The problem is the Raiders' defense is using a standard four-man pass rush on 76.6% of opponents' dropbacks this season, the second-highest rate in the league, while creating a 32.2% pressure rate when sending four or fewer, just under the average around the NFL entering Week 6 (33.1%), according to the NFL's Next Gen Stats. When they actually blitz, their pressure rate increases to 63.4%, the highest in the NFL, per TruMedia. Las Vegas defensive coordinator Rob Leonard breaking his tendencies and channeling his inner Brian Flores will be crucial come Sunday. 

Avoiding Crosby

No matter what Buffalo is running, they'll certainly look to avoid Crosby. He has played on 85.3% of defensive snaps, the second-highest rate among edge defenders, trailing only Detroit Lions Pro Bowler Aidan Hutchinson (89.1%), per the NFL's Next Gen Stats. No matter who the Raiders play, opposing offenses have schemed up 70.3% of their designed runs away from his side of the field, the highest rate among 73 edge defenders on the field for at least 50 designed runs, per the NFL's Next Gen Stats. 

So where will Crosby be on Sunday? Odds are across the Bills' right tackle: Crosby has aligned on the left edge, offensive right edge, on 78.6% of his snaps this season. Opponents are double-teaming or chipping Crosby at the second-highest rate among edge defenders with at least 50 pass rushes from the left edge (34.6%), but he has still generated 20 pressures, including a sack, tied with two other players for the second-most from that specific spot, per the NFL's Next Gen Stats. Despite teams chipping and doubling him, Crosby is still racking up big numbers this season. He has two sacks in five games to go along with 30 quarterback pressures, tied for the fourth-most in the NFL with Houston Texans All-Pro edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. 

The Bills have one of the NFL's best-blocking right tackles in Spencer Brown, who has allowed a 6.3% pressure rate, the sixth-lowest among right tackles, but he left Week 5 with a back injury after just 15 snaps on Monday. Tylan Grable, his substitute, struggled. Grable surrendered four quarterback pressures on 20 pass blocks the rest of the night for a 20% quarterback pressure rate allowed, the highest by any Bills offensive lineman in a game this season, according to the NFL's Next Gen Stats. The good news for Buffalo is that Brown practiced fully on Thursday after being limited on Wednesday, indicating he is likely to be active in Week 6. 

How successful the Bills are with their under-center, play-action passing game and how wild Crosby is able to roam will likely decide the victor in this AFC clash Sunday afternoon at 4:25 pm EST on CBS.