Week 9 is officially over in the 2016 NFL Season. As we look forward to Week 10, let's discuss the league's most prestigious individual award, the NFL MVP award.
New England Patriots' Tom Brady is the favorite
Despite playing just four games so far this season, New England Patriots' star quarterback Tom Brady is the favorite for this year's NFL Most Valuable Player (MVP) award.
Brady didn't play at the first four games of the Patriots due to deflategate suspension. Without him, the Patriots are a decent 3-1. But when he returned in the Patriots' lineup, the team is clearly the best team in the NFL.
They never lost a game this season since Brady played. They won the game against Browns, Bengals, Steelers and Bills. They were in a four-game winning streak right now and there's no indication of slowing down for the Patriots, especially with the way Brady is playing.
Since his return, he is throwing 400 yards and 3 touchdowns a game. He also led the league in completion percentage and passer rating.
Brady was drafted in the sixth round and 199th overall pick in the 2000 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots. Now in his 17th NFL season, Brady has made sixe trips in NFL Super Bowl and won four. He was also a 3-time Super Bowl MVP, 2 NFL MVP awards and 11 Pro Bowl selections. Many analysts considered Brady as the greatest quarterback of all time, per Wikipedia.
The Patriots might be a playoff team without Brady. But they are clearly the best team in the league if Brady is on the field. Brady is the clear favorite for this year's MVP award. Also, ESPN awarded Tom Brady as the midseason MVP.
The other players competing for the NFL Most Valuable Player award
Aside from Brady, here are the other two candidates competing in the MVP race. According to Blasting News, Detroit Lions' quarterback Matthew Stafford and Atlanta Falcons' quarterback Matt Ryan are the other players who are possible MVP this season.
Matthew Stafford is having an amazing season so far. Despite playing with less supporting cast, Stafford led the team to a decent 5-4 record which is enough for second in the NFC North division behind the Vikings.
If the Lions make the NFL playoffs, Stafford might be one of the top choices for the MVP award. If his team failed to make it to the postseason, there's a high possibility that he might not get the award.
Matt Ryan, on the other hand, is also having a stellar season. He might finish the season as the player with more passing yards and touchdowns than any quarterback in the league. The Atlanta Falcons are also having a great season. At 6-3, the Falcons is leading the NFC South division.
He is playing alongside a great receiver in Julio Jones. And according to FiveThirtyEight, Matt Ryan is the midseason MVP.
