The Race for MVP

We're 6 games into the NFL season, roughly a third of the way through, however we've already seen some spectacular football from a few different MVP runners so far. What has not changed yet about this award this season is the lack of non-quarterbacks on this list of early frontrunners. All of the candidates I will discuss in this blog post are all quarterbacks. So, nothing much different here in this department, sadly. Unless another non-QB completely wows us by the end of the season...

Two-time MVP Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson (@new_era8) appears to be the early frontrunner for the award and it's hard to argue for a case against him. After starting slow with two losses to begin the season (to Kansas City and Las Vegas), Jackson has been on a tear with 4 straight wins (over Dallas, Buffalo, Cincinnati, and Washington). Not only is 4 straight wins impressive, but they were all done against prestigious quarterbacks like Cowboys QB Dak Prescott, Bills QB Josh Allen, Bengals QB Joe Burrow, and Washington rookie sensation QB Jayden Daniels. In addition to an impressive slate of wins, Jackson has the stats to back it up. In six games this season, Jackson has totaled 1,529 passing yards and 10 passing touchdowns along with 403 rushing yards and 2 rushing touchdowns (ESPN). If Jackson keeps up this pace, he could very well reach the 4K passing yard and 1K rushing yard mark by the end of the season... and that sounds pretty MVP-worthy.

Another candidate, who always feels like a given every year, is three-time Super Bowl winner Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes (@patrickmahomes). However, the reason Mahomes is on the list this year is a bit different. Mahomes has not been doing great stat-wise, as he's racked up 6 interceptions and has an uncharacteristically low QBR with 57.8 (ESPN). A lot of these lows can be attributed to the fact that Mahomes has lost two of his top receivers (WR Hollywood Brown and WR Rashee Rice) to injury, in addition to his top RB Isiah Pacheco to injury as well. Despite losing many offensive weapons, Mahomes has posted 1,235 passing yards with 6 passing touchdowns in addition to remaining one of the only undefeated teams. Mahomes will always find a way to keep winning despite adversity, and it's a big reason he's consistently mentioned as an MVP candidate.

The last candidate of this "big three" has to be Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen (@joshallenqb). Allen is putting together one of his best seasons yet. The Bills QB had historically struggled with high interception numbers which left a sour taste in peoples' mouths. However, through 6 games, Allen has recorded 0 interceptions while notching 10 passing touchdowns (ESPN). Allen has also thrown for 1,160 passing yards with 178 rushing yards and 3 rushing touchdowns as well, posting an impressive QBR of 19.3 (the highest of these three early MVP candidates) (ESPN). He's doing this in the season immediately following the offseason loss of star receiver Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans. The Bills also just added former Browns WR Amari Cooper in a trade this past week, injecting some more hope into Allen's MVP campaign.

There's plenty more candidates that could be mentioned, but these are the biggest three so far. There's still plenty of football left, and other quarterbacks are not so far away from these as you'd think. It will be a close race, and NFL fans should feel spoiled with the talent we are currently witnessing. Who do you think is the early MVP frontrunner? Is there someone I missed? Comment your thoughts and opinions below. I'd be happy to discuss.

-- Justin Birkelien

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