2024 NFL MVP CHASE AFTER WEEK 1
Only winners.
Welcome to the 2024 NFL MVP Chase!
The NFL MVP Chase is designed to determine who would get my votes I had an Associate Press ballot for the National Football League's Most Valuable Player.
For me, it's about seeing the trees instead of the forest. That is, instead of looking at the "forest" of season statistics, I'm determined to take a weekly look at the "tree" and find out if a) a player's team got a victory and b) if he played a very good or great game in that victory.
After all, how "valuable" is a player when he doesn't make substantial contributions to a team's victories? Don’t they play to win the game?
To kick off the MVP Chase, I looked at the quarterbacks, running backs, and receivers on winning teams this past week. For players who had very good games, I assigned a minimum of 0.9 points to a maximum of 1.58 points for the player, depending on their yards from scrimmage or passer rating. Scoring touchdowns also helped, although touchdowns are not nearly as heavily weighted in the MVP Chase as in fantasy football.
If a player rushes for 200 yards and four touchdowns in a losing effort, he gets no MVP points. But if he gets 90 yards from scrimmage with no touchdowns in a win, he gets 0.9 points. He might have teammates who had more than that; they get points too. So will their quarterback if he has a 90.0 passer rating.
As we go through the season, more players will be added to the Chase when their teams win. Some people on the board now will fall behind as their teams lose. We'll keep you updated and at the end, we'll see if the MVP Chase leaders match the top MVP vote-getters.
This week's list seems heavy on running backs at the top. This is not surprising; what would be surprising is if those players can sustain that output throughout the season. This week I've listed all the players that qualified, but in future weeks I will narrow down the list to a top ten of fifteen.
MVP CHASE LEADERS
Joe Mixon, RB, Texans, 1.58
Jordan Mason, RB, 49ers 1.58
Saquon Barkley, RB, Eagles 1.58
Josh Allen, QB, Bills, 1.577
JK Dobbins, RB, Chargers 1.49
Baker Mayfield, QB, Buccaneers, 1.464
James Williams, WR Lions 1.44
Derek Carr, QB, Saints, 1.425
Tyreek Hill, WR, Chiefs 1.40
Rhamondre Stevenson, RB, Patriots, 1.36
A.J. Brown, WR, Eagles 1.29
Alvin Kamara, RB, Saints 1.20
Aaron Jones, RB, Viking 1.19
Nico Collins, WR, Texans 1.17
Jaylen Waddle, WR, Dolphins 1.12
Kenneth Walker III, RB, Seahawks 1.19
Rachaad White, Buccaneers 1.16
James Cook, Bills 1.13
Rashee Rice, Chiefs 1,13
De'Von Achane, Dolphins 1.10
David Montgomery 1.03
Patrick Mahomes, QB, Chiefs 1.019
Tua Tagovailoa, QB, Dolphins 1.010
Geno Smith, QB, Seahawks, 0.972
CeeDee Lamb, WR, Cowboys 0.96
DaVonta Smith, WR, Eagles 0.94
Chris Godwin, WR, Buccaneers, 9.93
Justin Herbert, QB, Chargers, 0.925
Justin Fields, QB, Steelers, 0.919
James Leroy Wilson writes The MVP Chase (subscribe). Thank you for your subscriptions and support! You may contact James for writing, editing, research, and other work: jamesleroywilson-at-gmail.com.