Brady climbs atop poll in tight race among QBs

From Week 1 through Week 17, USA TODAY’s NFL staff will be handicapping the race for league MVP. A first-place vote is worth five points, a second-place is worth three and a third-place is worth one. Our MVP tracker after Week 13.

1. QB Tom Brady, Patriots (27 points): He’s atop our poll for the first time this season as he potentially closes in on a third piece of MVP hardware. Even coming off a subpar performance at Buffalo, Brady’s bona fides are not in doubt. He leads the NFL with 3,632 passing yards, 300 completions and a 109.7 passer rating. His 26-to-4 touchdown-to-interception ratio is typically exceptional. And at 10-2, the Patriots are tied for the league’s best record. But he has some land mines to avoid, with his next games at Miami — oddly, South Florida is often a house of horrors for Brady — and Pittsburgh.

Last week: 2

2. QB Russell Wilson, Seahawks (23 points): He’s narrowly trailing TB12, and given Wilson’s Herculean effort to keep an injury-ravaged team in the playoff race, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he eventually overtakes Brady. Consider this: The Seahawks offense has produced 30 TDs, and Wilson (26 TD passes, 3 rush TDs) has been involved in all but one. Fifteen of his TD passes have come in the fourth quarter, and the next one will establish

a league record for a season. And Wilson’s fourth-quarter passer rating? How about 134.1. Hard to beat productive and clutch. LW: 3

3. QB Carson Wentz, Eagles (13 points): After spending the last six weeks in the lead, he takes a tumble after Philly’s Sunday night clunker at Seattle. But Wentz probably won’t need much to bounce back. He continues to lead the NFL with 29 TD passes, and the Eagles are one of four teams at 10-2. LW: 1