Tom Krasovic: In dome and in snow, Matthew Stafford and Josh Allen show why they’re 2 of NFL’s best

It may have been an NFL first.

Ref displays coin for pregame flip, star quarterback praises coin.

“Swaggy,” said Matthew Stafford.

Stafford’s own swagger was intact Sunday, from coin flip through his game exit, which came with the Los Angeles Rams up four touchdowns on the Arizona Cardinals and headed for a 45-17 road win.

You could count on the Stafford laser show. Top-tier quarterbacks tend not to allow setbacks to knock them down for long.

The week before, Stafford was picked off twice by the Carolina Panthers – once in the end zone off a deflection, once for a touchdown. L.A. went on to lose as a 9 1/2-point favorite.

Stafford looked eager to atone on Sunday. Maybe too eager. Twice on the first drive, he misfired toward an open Davante Adams in the end zone.

No matter. He heated up to finish 22 for 31 for 281 yards, three passing touchdowns — and no turnovers. The passer rating of 131.2 was his second-highest total during a sparkling season.

The Rams (10-3) patched up their run defense, and kept the Cardinals (3-10) from reprising the NFL formula of a divisional rival punching above its weight.

With help from the Green Bay Packers, who beat the Chicago Bears, coach Sean McVay’s club (10-3) assumed the top spot in the race for the NFC’s lone playoff bye.

Next come games against Jared Goff and the Detroit Lions (8-5) and the rising Seattle Seahawks (10-3).

Still, the Stafford Show wasn’t the swaggiest performance Sunday.

Far from the Arizona desert, playing in New York snow, Josh Allen passed for three touchdowns, ran 40 yards for another score and rushed for the Bills’ victory-clinching first down on third-and-15 as Buffalo beat Cincinnati 39-34.

Allen made sure that teammates’ interceptions of two consecutive passes by Bengals star Joe Burrow in the fourth quarter would lead to the victory.

By winning, the Bills kept alive their semi-realistic shot at getting the AFC’s first-round playoff bye.

Next, Buffalo (9-4) will play at AFC co-leader New England (11-2), while Denver (11-2) meets a Jacksonville (9-4) club that’s tied with Buffalo in the conference’s second tier.

Here’s what Allen showed us Sunday: of the quarterbacks now likely to reach the postseason, he’s playing the best. Yes, even better than Stafford, who may end up succeeding him as the league’s MVP.

Patrick Mahomes remains Patrick Mahomes. But with the Chiefs at 6-6 going into Sunday night’s game, his playoff odds aren’t great. Lamar Jackson has fallen off, and his Baltimore Ravens (6-7) stand as the NFL’s most disappointing team.

Though Patriots star and MVP candidate Drake Maye, 23, has scaled a Kilimanjaro-level learning curve in less than two full NFL seasons, he’s new to the league’s higher-stakes competition.

Justin Herbert? His broken left hand reduces his aptitude.

It’s Stafford and Allen who have the most capacity.

The calendar explains why Allen gets a slight edge there.

As the games become more important, Allen becomes more willing to increase his injury risk by running into the defense.

Sunday, after he powered through one Bengals blitzer’s arm swipe, while Bills left tackle Deon Dawkins erased another blitzer, Allen ran 40 yards untouched across the snowy carpet.

It went for his 77th career rushing touchdown. That’s the most by an NFL quarterback.

Unlike the next two QBs on the list – Cam Newton and Steve Young – Allen has not played in a Super Bowl.

December is here, and once again, the 29-year-old Californian looks to be in peak form.

Buffalo’s defense, alas, does not. But the late-game pickoffs by Christian Benford and A.J. Epenesa provided hope for improvement.

Benford’s play was an A+. Blitzing from the corner, he made a leaping two-handed snag of Burrow’s short-armed lob and stepped out of the QB’s tackle attempt to go 63 yards for the TD.