Happy Hump Day football fans and welcome back to our weekly discussion about the NFL players in the running for the league MVP award. A week ago, our top three candidates included Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes, and Russell Wilson.
Two of the three players on the list led their respective teams to victory while one was of them came up a bit short. With that being said, here’s a look at where the players rank based on how they performed in Week 7.
Third-Best NFL MVP Odds: Patrick Mahomes (+450). Last Week (+400)
Patrick Mahomes dropped from the second spot down to No. 3 on our weekly list. Following an outing against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 5, Mahomes’ numbers have been somewhat pedestrian over the past two games.
In the team’s 26-17 win over the Bills in Week 5, Mahomes completed 21 of 26 passes for 225 yards and a pair of touchdowns. In a 43-16 win over the Denver Broncos, he was 15 of 23 for 200 yards and he did not throw his lone touchdown pass of the game until the fourth quarter.
On the flip side, the Chiefs continue to win games even though opponents have kept the big passing plays to a minimum. Additionally, Mahomes’ 16 TD passes are tied for fourth and he has thrown just one interception.
Second-Best NFL MVP Odds: Aaron Rodgers (+400). Last Week (+600)
Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers posted victories in each of their first four contests going into the bye week. Unfortunately, that four-game winning streak came to a screeching halt in their Week 6 outing against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
In that contest, Rodgers had his worst outing of the season, completing 16 of 35 passes for 160 yards to go with two interceptions. But Mr. Discount Double Check bounced back against the Houston Texans in Week 7 as he completed 23 of 34 passes for 283 years and four touchdowns.
This marked the fourth time in which he’s thrown at least three touchdowns in a game this season. Also, Rodgers has 17 touchdown passes, which is the third-highest total in the NFL, and he has been mistake-free in five of the Packers’ six games this season.
Best NFL MVP Odds: Russell Wilson (+100). Last Week (-125)
The Seahawks were a perfect 5-0 heading into their divisional showdown against the Arizona Cardinals. As well as Seattle had been playing, they didn’t have the ending they’d hope for in this matchup. Despite leading by a 10-point margin in the fourth quarter, the Cardinals managed to send the game into overtime.
Then, uncharacteristically, Wilson threw an interception with his team marching down the field on what could have been the game-winning drive. Subsequently, the Cardinals capitalized on the turnover and escaped with a 37-34 win. Chef Wilson posted a completion rate of 66 percent, threw for 388 yards and three touchdowns.
However, he also had three interceptions, the last of which enabled the Cardinals to win the game. No, this wasn’t Wilson’s finest hour by any means. However, look for the MVP frontrunner to bounce back against the 49ers next week.
