NFL MVP Race: Is Patrick Mahomes Back in the Discussion?
After Patrick Mahomes' monster performance on Sunday Night Football, can we start to consider him back in the MVP race?
Matt O'Leary - November 15, 2021, 9:43 AM EST
4 minutesNFL MVP Race: Is Patrick Mahomes Back in the Discussion?
I really hope you didn’t count out the best quarterback in the game. Patrick Mahomes returned to his dominant form on Sunday Night Football for the world to see. For the first time in six weeks, Mahomes threw for more than two touchdown passes and he also didn’t have a turnover.
He went 35 of 50 (70 percent) for 406 yards, five touchdowns, a 127.6 rating, and a yards per attempt of 8.12. That ended his three-game streak of a rating under 80.
With his dominant performance, Mahomes is back leading the league in passing yards and he also has 25 passing touchdowns on the year already. Is it fair to say that he is back in the MVP conversation?
NFL MVP Odds
Name | Odds |
|---|---|
Josh Allen | +375 |
Tom Brady | +500 |
Matthew Stafford | +750 |
Dak Prescott | +900 |
Aaron Rodgers | +1200 |
Kyler Murray | +1600 |
Lamar Jackson | +1600 |
Justin Herbert | +2500 |
Patrick Mahomes | +5000 |
At this point, Patrick Mahomes is a long shot still with his odds. He put together a monster performance on the road in Las Vegas but he's going to need a few more of those before he is considered a legit player in this race again. Here's how he compares to the top-three favorites.
Stat Comparison
Name | CMP% | Yards/G | TD/G | INT/G | Y/A | Rating | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Patrick Mahomes | 65.8 | 294 | 2.5 | 1 | 7.1 | 96.7 | 58.5 |
Josh Allen | 66.3 | 289.1 | 2.11 | 0.67 | 7.5 | 99.6 | 60.5 |
Tom Brady | 67.4 | 318.9 | 3 | 0.78 | 7.6 | 106.1 | 65.6 |
Matthew Stafford | 68.2 | 307.9 | 2.56 | 0.67 | 8.6 | 111.0 | 69.8 |
As the stats show, he still has a little ways to go before he would be back into consideration for the award. With that said, Mahomes has the ability and the loaded offense to do this. On top of being the best pure passer in the game he has Tyreek Hill at WR, the best TE in the sport in Travis Kelce, and the best play-caller in the sport with Andy Reid. If there's anyone who can go from longshot to back in the race, it's Mahomes.
The AFC stayed mediocre enough to keep the Chiefs relevant through their struggles. Maybe the MVP race does the same thing.
