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The 2024 NFL regular season is over, and as such, each of the NFL MVP frontrunners have had their final chance to make their bid. The 2024 NFL MVP award won't be announced until the day after the Super Bowl, but the voters are going off of what happened during the 2024 regular season.
There were some big numbers put up this season (here's looking at you, Joe Burrow) and some incredible moments will certainly impact voter's decisions. Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen's incredible game-winning run against the two-time defending champ Kansas City Chiefs certainly stands out. Or how about Jared Goff's “perfect game” against the Seattle Seahawks? The Detroit Lions quarterback completed 18-of-18 passes in that 42-29 win.
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley got tantalizingly close to breaking Eric Dickerson's single-season rushing record, and Lamar Jackson, the reigning NFL MVP, put up the best statistical season of his incredible career. In fact, by beating the Cleveland Browns in Week 18 and helping the Ravens clinch the AFC North for the second straight season, Jackson likely sealed the deal on his third NFL MVP award.
NFL MVP Power Rankings for Week 18
NFL MVP ranking 1. Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens QB
As mentioned, Jackson is a two-time MVP, so the fact that he's closing in on his third at just 27 years old is just truly incredible. Patrick Mahomes has the Super Bowl rings and he's getting all of the “next Tom Brady” comparisons, but if Jackson ever gets his, he'll be right in that elite upper-echelon of modern day NFL quarterback just like Mahomes.
With Baltimore's win against the Browns on Saturday, not only did Jackson help the Ravens once again win the AFC North, but he put a wrap on the best statistical season of his career — by far. Jackson threw for 4,172 yards and 41 touchdowns compared to just four interceptions. He also rushed for 915 yards and four touchdowns on the ground, meaning his total production from scrimmage was 5,087 yards and 45 touchdowns.
He became the first player in NFL history to hit those passing and rushing yardage marks while also becoming the first quarterback ever to throw for over 40 touchdown passes with less than five picks. Even his head coach, John Harbaugh, had to marvel at him after he threw for 217 yards and two touchdowns in the win against Cleveland.
“He's just one of a kind. There's nobody like Lamar Jackson,” Harbaugh said, according to Jamison Hensley of ESPN.
NFL MVP ranking 2. Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals QB
Jackson's 2024 regular season was incredible, but no quarterback put up better stats than Burrow in 2024. His 9-8 Cincinnati Bengals didn't make the playoffs, but had they (and they were close), there's a strong case to be made that Burrow could have toppled Jackson in these rankings.
Burrow finished the season with 4,918 yards and 43 touchdown thrown, both marks that led the NFL. His nine interceptions were his only downfall, but he still finished with a 70.6 completion percentage, and he was the arm on the other end of Ja'Marr Chase's triple-crown win.
Chase led all NFL wideouts with 127 catches for 1,708 yards and 17 touchdowns, though in very real sense, Burrow deserves credit for those achievements as well.
NFL MVP ranking 3. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills QB
Allen's tremendous run against the Chiefs may be his highlight of the 2024 season, but he showed up and showed out in each of the games he played in for the 13-4 Bills (Buffalo sat him out for the Week 18 contest against the New England Patriots.
Allen finished with 3,731 yards and 28 touchdowns thrown compared to just six interceptions. Like Jackson, though, his ability as a quarterback is far from the only ability that makes him elite. The 6-foot-5, 237-pound quarterback also rushed 102 times for 531 yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground. That puts his total production from scrimmage at 4,262 yards and 40 total touchdowns.
NFL MVP ranking 4. Jared Goff, Detroit Lions QB
Jared Goff may not be the NFL MVP, but there's no doubt that he was the MVP for the NFC's No. 1 seed. The Lions finished the season at 15-2, which was a franchise record for wins. They won the NFC North for the second year in a row, and they'll be the NFC's top seed for the first time in franchise history.
Head coach Dan Campbell deserves a ton of the credit for Detroit's turnaround, and the Lions are a Super Bowl favorite because of the grit and culture that he's instilled into his team. With that said, Goff is the engine that keeps Detroit's high-powered offense going, and it's his accuracy and ability to make any throw on the field that makes the Lions so dangerous.
Goff finished the 2024 season with 4,629 yards (second only to Burrow) and 37 touchdowns with just 12 interceptions thrown. The game in which he threw five touchdowns against the Houston Texans skewed his numbers a bit, but he still finished the 2024 season with one of the best passer ratings in the NFL at 111.8. To put that in perspective, Jackson's was 119.6.
