What a week of NFL football. We saw the San Francisco 49ers demolish the Philadelphia Eagles in a NFC Championship rematch. The Green Bay Packers upset the Kansas City Chiefs in primetime. Oh, and the Panthers still suck. Regardless, as we head into Monday night’s matchup between the Bengals and the Jaguars, why not look at the top candidates for the league’s Most Valuable Player award? I mean, no one in either Jacksonville or Cincinnati is deserving of the award anyway. Let’s get into it.
5. Patrick Mahomes
The Chiefs quarterback is not to blame for the team’s struggles. Well, maybe a little. His ten interceptions are among the worst in the NFL. However, when you’re working with a young, inexperienced receiving corps, let’s cut the man some slack.
It has been a down year for Kansas City, no doubt. Despite leading the AFC West at 8-4, it’s more of the subpar play of the teams in the division compared to absolute domination in terms of why they remain in first. Their most notable win was against the Miami Dolphins, and they barely escaped Germany with a 21-14 win. Not to mention, no points were scored by Kansas City in the second half of that game.
Despite the team’s struggles from struggling to score in the second half to unexplainable losses, Mahomes is still a strong MVP candidate. His 3,127 passing yards is good for eighth-best in the league, and his 22 touchdowns put him in the top five in that category. Not to mention, for you nerds out there, his QBR of 69.8 is fourth-best in the NFL.
Without their superstar under center, the Chiefs definitely wouldn’t be even close to a playoff spot. Even during the down times, Mahomes will always find a way. It looks a bit bleak right now, but all we can do is hope he’ll help mask the team’s struggles.
4. Dak Prescott
What a turnaround for Dallas’s franchise quarterback. Remember when he said he would not throw more than ten interceptions this season and everyone laughed at that notion? Well, who’s laughing now?
Despite having five games left to go, Prescott’s recent play shows that he may hold up to that statement. But, that’s not the main topic here. His 2023 season thus far has been phenomenal.
This year, the quarterback is completing 70.1% of his passes, throwing for 3,234 yards and 26 touchdowns. All of those statistics rank him in the top five of the league (including leading the league in passing touchdowns). Prescott also has a higher QBR than Mahomes, currently sitting at 75.6 and tied with 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy.
Criticize the “easy” schedule Dallas has had to deal with this year. Every single team in the NFL is filled with professionals whose goal is to stop the hot hand. Since that terrible performance against the 49ers on primetime in week five (three interceptions), he’s thrown 21 touchdowns to just two interceptions. That’s MVP play.
With Dallas sitting at 9-3 with a chance to grab the number one seed away from the Philadelphia Eagles, Prescott’s play will be the main reason why if they achieve that success.
3. Brock Purdy
Yeah, you’re probably getting bored with the selection of quarterback for these rankings. But, it is a quarterback-dominant award. I will promise the top two selections aren’t quarterbacks, okay?
Let’s focus on Purdy now. He is playing like a first-round pick this year. Sure, there have been struggles here and there. Yes, many criticize him for not performing well when his star left tackle and wide receiver have to miss games (Trent Williams and Deebo Samuel, respectively). But, you can’t sit here and say Purdy shouldn’t be in the MVP conversation.
Completing 70.2% of his passes so far this year, his 3,185 yards this season is good for seventh-best in the NFL. Not to mention, he’s thrown 23 touchdowns while maintaining the best QBR in the entire league. Crazy how a seventh-round pick is playing better statistically than the superstar names of Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, and others.
He’s doing this all while leading the 49ers to wins consistently. With the team sitting at 9-3, they lead the NFC West while also giving them a chance at the top seed in the conference. Their win against the Eagles helped their case. By the way, Purdy’s performance against that top defense? 19/27 for 314 yards and four touchdowns. Maybe the 49ers would have made the Super Bowl last year if he didn’t get hurt.
2. Christian McCaffrey
He’s not just Purdy’s teammate. The former Stanford product leads the league in rushing with 1,032 yards on the season. To compare, the next closest running back is Derrick Henry with 841. A pretty solid lead, I may add.
McCaffrey’s 12 touchdowns on the year is good for second-best in the league. Not to mention, averaging 86 yards on the ground per game puts him near the top in that category.
San Francisco depends on him more than you think. His 63 first downs lead the NFL by a wide margin (with Jalen Hurts in second with 50 first downs). Not to mention, his contributions in the passing game have been shown on multiple occasions (51 receptions, 429 yards, and five touchdowns through 12 games).
Without him, his quarterback nor the team as a whole would be as successful as they are right now. The team traded for him last season for a reason, and they are just reaping the benefits of having a dual-threat running back like him.
1. Tyreek Hill
Need I say more? The Dolphins wide receiver has been shining brightly in Miami (and missed dearly in Kansas City).
Among the most targeted weapons in the NFL, Hill’s 93 receptions is good for second behind Keenan Allen of the Los Angeles Chargers. More importantly, he leads the league in yards with 1,481 yards. Ceedee Lamb of the Dallas Cowboys is the closest with 1,182. A big margin, indeed.
Hill’s 12 touchdowns also lead the league, and his 123.4 yards per game is by far the best out of everyone else at his position. Tua Tagovailoa was just an average quarterback before his arrival. Now? The Dolphins quarterback is among the best passers in the league because of the speedy receiver at his disposal.
Conversations have begun to brew up in terms of Hill breaking Calvin Johnson‘s single-season receiving record of 1,964. At this rate, Hill will likely break that mark.
His big play ability along with dependable hands and speed are the reason why the Dolphins are sitting at 9-3 in the AFC. The Kansas City Chiefs sure miss him. But, that’s what happens when you move on from someone amazing. You tend to have regrets. Hill’s recent performance against the Washington Commanders just goes to show that speed kills. It may be the reason why he will win NFL MVP and will be the first wide receiver ever to do so.
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Featured Image: Rob Carr/Getty Images
