It’s Week 12, can anyone catch up to Mahomes?
What seemed to be a wide-open race for the NFL Most Valuable Player award now looks like a one-horse race as the season hits the homestretch.
Here’s who’s trending up in the race for MVP through Week12:
1. Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes (last week: No. 1): Mahomes has made greatness look routine. He led his seventh career game-winning drive Sunday night, throwing a 22-yard touchdown pass to tight end Travis Kelce with 28 seconds left to lift the Chiefs over the Raiders, 35-31. The 2018 MVP finished 34-for-45 passing with 348 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, avenging his only loss this season as Kansas City improved to 9-1, just a game behind the undefeated Steelers for the top seed in the AFC. He has more passing yards (12,447) and passing touchdowns (103) than any player in league history through 41 career starts, including 27 touchdown passes this season, third most in the league.
2. Packers QB Aaron Rodgers (No. 2): Rodgers threw for 311 yards, three touchdowns and an interception in a 34-31 overtime loss to the Colts in which Green Bay blew a 14-point halftime lead. It created one of the strangest records of Rodgers’ career: He’s now1-2 against the Colts after building a 14-point lead and 95-2 against all other teams. Overtime has been unkind to Rodgers throughout his career. After Sunday, he is 2-8-1 in OT games, having attempted only 17 passes in those games and losing four times without touching the ball.
3. Seahawks QB Russell Wilson (No. 5): With a 28-21 victory over the Cardinals on Thursday night, Wilson broke a tie with Peyton Manning for the most wins by a quarterback in his first nine seasons with 93. He completed 23 of 28 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns, and most importantly, didn’t turn the ball over after doing so four times in the previous two weeks. He joined Drew Brees and Brett Favre as the only quarterbacks with 30 touchdown passes in at least four consecutive seasons.
4. Bills QB Josh Allen (No. 4): Allen’s progression as a passer has been remarkable since his rookie season in 2018, but his rushing ability is not to be overlooked. The Bills star has 21 red-zone rushing touchdowns since 2018, eight more than any other quarterback. He’s improved his completion rate by 10% this season and is averaging nearly 100 more passing yards per game, a big reason why the Bills are 7-3 and leading the AFC East after their bye week.
5. Cardinals QB Kyler Murray (No. 3): Murray lost a big chance for a signature victory in Thursday night’s loss to the Seahawks, throwing for 269 yards and two touchdowns but failing to score on his final two possessions as he took a safety and turned the ball over on downs. He was held to just 15 rushing yards, by far his fewest of the season, and was sacked three times. His passing numbers aren’t MVP level, with just 19 touchdown passes to eight interceptions, but his 619 rushing yards and 10 rushing touchdowns will keep him in this race.
In the running
Raiders QB Derek Carr: The Raiders couldn’t quite beat Mahomes a second time, but Carr delivered a big performance with 275 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. He remains an efficient passer, joining Russell Wilson as the only players in NFL history with 25,000 pass yards and fewer than 70 interceptions in their first seven seasons.
Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger: There are really only two reasons to give Roethlisberger the award at this point: The Steelers’ 10-0 record and his 24-to-5 touchdown-to-interception ratio. He ranks 16th in Total QBR, 22nd in EPA/CPOE composite and 16th in average net yards per pass attempt, which incorporates passing yardage, sacks, touchdowns and interceptions. But he’s getting the ball to his playmakers, and as long as Pittsburgh keeps winning, he’ll remain in the discussion.
Titans QB Ryan Tannehill: The 30-24 overtime win over the Ravens had more to do with Derrick Henry’s legs than Tannehill’s arm, but he still finished with 259 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, gashing Baltimore with some big throws off play action. He’s not going to impress voters week after week with gaudy numbers or flashy plays, but he’s putting together a strong season for one of the AFC’s toughest contenders.
Buccaneers QB Tom Brady: An ugly interception, Brady’s second of the game, sealed a 27-24 loss to the Rams on Monday night, dropping the Bucs (7-4) to the sixth seed in the NFC and lowering their chances to win the division to 23.1%, according to ESPN’s Football Power Index. Brady has been up and down this season as he tries to find his groove with a new set of teammates, though his overall stats (23 touchdowns, seven interceptions, 7.1 yards per attempt) have been respectable.