With just one week remaining in the NFL season, there's little time for players to improve their cases for individual awards. Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs once again look to be Super Bowl contenders after a prolific regular season, and when things are all said and done, it'd be a shocker if the 27-year-old didn't take home MVP honors for the second time in his career.
While there are other viable contenders for the award, including the likes of Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen, Philadelphia Eagles QB Jalen Hurts, Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow, and Minnesota Vikings WR Justin Jefferson, among others, the case for Mahomes is by far the strongest. The Chiefs QB has been borderline unstoppable in 2022, and anything less than an MVP award for the superstar would be criminal from the NFL.
Fans of other contenders shouldn't have their hopes set too high, as with the regular season now complete, the 2022 NFL MVP award is Patrick Mahomes' to lose — and here are three reasons why.
3. Chiefs are NFL's best team
The shot-caller for the best team in football — it's only natural that Patrick Mahomes is at least in contention for the MVP award. At 14-3, the Chiefs have a chance to finish the year with the best record in the NFL, should the Philadelphia Eagles lose against the New York Giants. The team won its seventh consecutive AFC West title this year, as Mahomes has done nothing but dominate during his six-year tenure in the NFL.
With the postseason just around the corner, it's hard to write the Chiefs off as Super Bowl favorites, alongside the Buffalo Bills and Eagles. Mahomes hasn't been flawless for the Chiefs, but when he does make a rare mistake, it hasn't been overly detrimental to their success.
2. Mahomes is posting video games numbers
Mahomes is pacing the NFL in a handful of categories, once again creating the illusion that he's playing Madden on rookie mode. In 2022, Mahomes has reached 5,000 passing yards for the second time in his career and is the NFL's touchdown leader with 41. He's also setting a career-best mark in terms of pass accuracy, completing a career-high 67.1 percent of his pass attempts.
Mahomes will finish the 2022 NFL season with 5,250 passing yards, 41 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions across 17 starts. He leads the league in passing yards, touchdowns, QBR, and passing yards per game. Just when you think Mahomes can't top what he's done in years past, he and the Chiefs defy the odds and string together another stellar season. Another MVP feels like a virtual guarantee for Mahomes this year, and it'd be hard to argue against that when looking over the stats.
1. Mahomes is doing it all with new weapons
Perhaps the most understated part of Patrick Mahomes' jaw-dropping 2022 campaign has been the absence of Tyreek Hill. While much has been made of Hill's move to the Dolphins and how quickly he adapted to playing with Tua Tagovailoa, Mahomes has had plenty of success with some rather unfamiliar targets this year, too.
While Travis Kelce is doing his usual Hall of Fame level things at tight end, the Chiefs have introduced JuJu Smith-Schuster, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and Kadarius Toney to the offense this year, all of whom have developed a strong rapport with Mahomes in no time at all. Skyy Moore is another new addition to the mix in KC, and Mecole Hardman has battled injuries, further limiting the familiar faces for the Chiefs QB to look for. Despite the turnover at receiver, the Chiefs' offense hasn't missed a beat, and it's a credit to Mahomes' ability as a passer that he's capable of producing such prolific numbers in such circumstances.
Follow Us
Subscribe