MVP Race after Week 9: Jackson and Allen tied for top spot, Mahomes drops, Goff gaining steam

We are heading into the second half of the season and the top three names on the MVP board have remained a constant over the opening nine weeks of the season. Patrick Mahomes continues to lead the Chiefs’ perfect pursuit of a three-peat, Lamar Jackson has the Ravens looking like serious contenders in the AFC and Josh Allen is having the most efficient and mistake free season he’s had in Buffalo and the Bills currently hold the 2 spot in the AFC. In the NFC Jared Goff is the face of the best looking team in the NFL, the Detroit Lions and Jayden Daniels isn’t just aiming for Rookie of the Year honors, he’s got his eyes set on the NFL MVP.

Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore Ravens (+300)

The Ravens shock loss to the Browns was a wake up call that let Baltimore know they aren’t invincible even though at times they can look that way. On Sunday against the Broncos, they went back to looking invincible thanks to their one-two punch of Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry. Henry went for a hundy-spot and two TDs while Jackson had a perfect passer rating while tossing for three TDs and 280 yards. The only thing that Jackson didn’t do was run the ball, going for 4 yards on three carries. That might hurt his chances for a 4,000 yard passing, 1,000 yard rushing season but he is still on track. He’s third in passing yardage third in TD passes and has only thrown two INTs. I’m not sure how he and Allen have the same odds after this week. Jackson’s stats, and highlights have been far more spectacular up until this point.

Pass stats: 68.2% CMP, 2,379 YDS, 20 TD, 2 INT, 120.7 RTG

Rush stats: 84 CAR, 505 YDS, 2 TD

Josh Allen, QB, Buffalo Bills (+300)

Don’t look now, but the Bills who were supposed to be rebuilding their offense is now the 2 seed in the AFC after nine weeks of the season. That can all be attributed to Josh Allen, who saw his top targets depart from Orchard Park this offseason and a handful of impact defensive players go down with long term injuries. Allen has carried his team all season, just like he did against the Dolphins on Sunday. It was a slow start to the game for both teams, but once Allen connected for his first TD, the floodgates opened. He and Tua went back and forth until the very last possession as both teams exchanged leads four times and in the end it was Allen who had the last say. He drove the Bills down field and set up a game winning field goal which Tyler Bass drilled on a career long effort from 61 yards away. Allen threw his second INT of the season, which was not at all his fault, but played smart, winning football the rest of the way as the Bills tucked into the 2 spot in the conference.

Pass stats: 64.1% CMP, 2,0001 YDS, 17 TD, 2 INT, 105.8 RTG

Rush stats: 47 CAR, 211 YDS, 3 TD

Patrick Mahomes, QB, Kansas City Chiefs (+450)

This will be my fourth time saying this line, but it fits so get over it. The Chiefs are perfect, but they haven’t been perfect. Patrick Mahomes has had to dig deep to keep his team perfect and he did so once again on Monday night against the Bucs. We talk about the Bucs being banged up with their top two WRs out injured, but we kind of overlook just how impressive it is what Mahomes has been able to accomplish. On Monday he was without his top four WRs, three on IR on Juju Smith-Schuster out with a bad hammy. Despite that Mahomes had the best game of the season. Sure the Chiefs brought in an All-Pro receiver in DeAndre Hopkins, but he’s been there for just a week and a half and they looked like they have been playing together for years. Hopkins caught two of his three passing TDs, and when overtime came, even the Bucs knew they were screwed when Mahomes and the Chiefs won the toss. This team knows how to win tight games, because they have Mahomes as their QB. He doesn’t have the best stats in the league and has finished the first half of the season with just two more TDs than INTs, but the Chiefs are still undefeated.

Pass stats: 69.9% CMP, 1,942 YDS, 11 TDS, 9 INT, 90.1 RTG

Rush stats: 36 CAR, 148 YDS, 1 TD

Jared Goff, QB, Detroit Lions (+700)

Sure Jared Goff was having a nearly perfect stretch of games over the month of October, but he played all those games in a dome. Either in Detroit or on the road, Goff was reaping the benefits of a comfortable climate and perfect passing conditions. Well, he stormed in to Lambeau and lit up the Packers defense on a rainy, windy after noon from the Soggy Tundra. After a month that he had 10 TDs and 13 incompletions, Goff went into a hated division rivals house and went 18/22 for 145 yards and a TD. Hard to put up better numbers in those sort of conditions. Goff has overtaken Jayden Daniels as the most accurate passer in the league, he’s got the second best rating in the league ad most importantly he has the Lions leading the NFC after a six game win streak.

Pass stats: 74.9% CMP, 1,840 YDS, 14 TD, 4 INT, 115.0 RTG

Rush stats: 17 CAR, 16 YDS, 0 TD,

Jayden Daniels, QB, Washington Commanders (+1000)

After a miracle finish against the Bears, Washington hosted the Giants and were able to beat their division rivals in less dramatic fashion. Daniels had both of his two TD passes in the first half, as he hit seven different receivers on his 15 completions. What the rookie is doing is nothing short of remarkable. He continues to defy the way we think a first year QB should play. Usually a rookie has a favorite target, and relies on that receiver to a fault. Daniels doesn’t do that. He completed just two passes to his No. 1 WR Terry McLaurin, one of those for a TD, and had the biggest play of the game right before the Two Minute Warning when he hit Olamide Zaccheaus on a deep ball to give the Commanders a first down and move Washington to 7-2 on the season, just a game back of the first placed Lions.

Pass stats: 71.5 % CMP, 1,945 YDS, 9 TD, 2 INT, 106.7 RTG

Rush stats: 82 CAR, 459 YDS, 4 TD