With four weeks remaining in the 2014 NFL regular season, here’s how we view the five most valuable players in football at this very moment…
1. Aaron Rodgers, Packers
Is it over? Almost. It’s going to be extremely hard for Rodgers to blow it now. His second MVP award is within his grasp following another near-flawless performance in a huge victory over Tom Brady and the New England Patriots.
Rodgers has an insane touchdown-to-interception ratio of 32-to-3 while leading the league by a massive margin with a passer rating of 118.6. He also has a league-high 8.8 yards per attempt and is the best player on the league’s hottest team.
At some point soon, we have to consider the possibility that Rodgers isn’t just putting together the best 2014 season among his peers, but also the best season we’ve ever seen from a quarterback.
2. J.J. Watt, Texans
What’s amazing is that Watt may be putting together the best season we’ve ever seen from a defensive player. That’s not enough to win MVP, especially on a non-playoff team and when you consider that a defender hasn’t won the award in nearly 30 years. Rodgers has been too good. But with Brady , Tony Romo and Peyton Manning fading, Watt deserves to be viewed as the runner up.
He had 10 pressures, two sacks and three defensive stops while also scoring his fifth touchdown of the season (three offensive, two defensive) in a dominant performance against the Titans. He was so good that we moved him from the “no longer in contention” category into the No. 2 spot on this list.
Watt now has 80 pressures. Nobody else in football has more than 63. He’s already wrapped up the defensive player of the year award, but there’s even a chance he swoops in and steals the MVP from Rodgers. A distant chance, but a chance nonetheless.
3. Tom Brady, Patriots
Brady just lost a duel to Rodgers, which hurts his chances. But he’s still got a 28-to-6 touchdown-to-interception ratio and has done more with less than most of his peers. If he can battle back with a big performance in San Diego, he’ll still be in contention for his third MVP award.
4. Peyton Manning, Broncos
Suddenly, he’s not even the focal point of the offense. C.J. Anderson and the running game are leading the way, and Manning just hasn’t been as dominant the last five weeks. His 107.8 passer rating (ranking second to Rodgers) keeps him alive for his sixth MVP, but he’s losing ground quickly.
5. Tony Romo, Cowboys
He had his worst game of the year in a big spot against the division-rival Eagles. When Romo plays poorly, so do the Cowboys. That’s a mark of an MVP candidate, but the problem is that he’s played poorly far too often, at least in comparison to Rodgers.
No longer in contention: Ben Roethlisberger had his fourth dog game of the year in a loss to New Orleans. Margin for error simply doesn’t allow for that.
