Jude Magnotti ’25
EE Sports Columnist
It’s halfway through the NFL season and it feels like we have barley even started. However, midseason gives us the opportunity to go back and reflect on the teams and players that have found success through this point in the season.
Let’s focus on what is potentially the most important award in sports: The NFL’s Most Valuable Player Award (MVP).
This award has been notoriously dominated by quarterbacks in the past and this season looks to be no different. So far, the front runners for this award have been Jalen Hurts of the Eagles, Patrick Mahomes of the Chiefs, and Tua Tagovailoa of the Dolphins.
Mahomes is the obvious choice, however due to voter fatigue, the MVP will probably be between Hurts and Tagovailoa, two quarterbacks from the 2020 class with underwhelming rookie and sophomore seasons (especially compared to Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert).
Through 12 weeks, the Eagles stand at 10-1 due in no small part to the efforts of Hurts. So far, he has had 2,560 passing yards, 17 passing touchdowns, 3 interceptions, and leads the league in QB rushing touchdowns with 8. Last year the Eagles finished only 9-8 and already having more wins then they had last year through just 11 games is a huge jump.
While Hurts has definitely been helped by the weapons Devonta Smith and A.J. Brown as well as Coach of the Year candidate Nick Sirianni, he’s absolutely taken a big leap from years 2 to 3 and the franchise would not be where it is at right now were it not for him. If the Eagles continue their winning ways it wouldn’t be surprising to see Hurts up on the stage accepting the MVP in February.
In the AFC, we have a quarterback that is in a very similar situation to Hurts–Tua Tagovailoa. Like Hurts, he possesses deadly weapons in both Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle with another Coach of the Year candidate in Mike McDaniel. The Dolphins have not had as much success as the Eagles, standing at only 8-3. However, it would be an understatement to say that Tua has had far superior individual numbers compared to Hurts.
At first glance, Tua’s 2,564 yards and 19 touchdowns may seam similar to Hurts’ stats, but when you dive into the advance metrics, nobody has been better that Tagovailoa. Despite playing only 8 games this season, Tua leads the league in passer rating, passing touchdowns per attempt, yards per attempt, yards per completion, total QBR, QBR vs zone, QBR vs man, QBR under pressure, QBR in the pocket, QBR out of the pocket, QBR in the redzone, QBR in 4th quarter, and QBR on third down.
From these stats, it is fair to say that this man puts up numbers. Tua does not have the rocket arm of Allen, the escapibility of Mahomes, or the scrambling of Jackson. However, from a pure quarterback standpoint, Tua has been by far the best in the league all year.
Unfortunately, most MVP quarterbacks have an element of flash and a significant narrative around them. Tua is not a flashy quarterback and is still hated and doubted by many around the league. Even if Tua Keeps putting up these ridiculous numbers and his team keeps winning, there is a very low chance of him winning the actual award. In terms of who I believe should win the award: Tagovailoa without a doubt.
But in terms of who will actually win the award, it will most likely go to Jalen Hurts. Lucky for Dolphins fans, even if Tua does not win the MVP, Tyreek is still by far the front runner for Offensive Player of the Year. Whatever happens this year at least one “Fin” will walk away with an award.