2023 NFL Season- Top Contenders for the MVP Award

Kurt Warner won the NFL MVP and the Super Bowl with the St. Louis Rams in the 1999 season. It took 23 years for another player to achieve the feat - Patrick Mahomes winning both with the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2022 season. Think about it, not even the great Peyton Manning or Tom Brady, who won nine Super Bowls and eight NFL MVPs between them, ever accomplished both in the same season.

Will 2023 bring another duel winner? Could Mahomes do it twice in a row? We're going to look at the odds of the three main contenders for the NFL MVP award this season to find out…

Patrick Mahomes - Kansas City Chiefs (11/2)

The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback has the chance in 2023 to do what no other player in NFL history has achieved. The two-time Super Bowl winner can become the first NFL player to win both the regular season MVP and the Super Bowl in consecutive seasons. As we've already mentioned, it's hard enough to do this once, so doing so twice would be a truly special accomplishment. 

The regular season started slowly for Patrick Mahomes as the defending Super Bowl champions lost by a point to the Detroit Lions. The quarterback seemed slightly off-color, with only 21 of his 39 passes being successful, for a total of 226 yards. He did throw two touchdown passes in the defeat, though.

Week 2 was much better for Mahomes as the Chiefs overcame the Jaguars by 17-9 in Jacksonville. In a tight game, the defending NFL MVP threw 305 yards, completing 29 of 41 passes, including two resulting in touchdowns. 

Week 3 saw the Chicago Bears visit Kansas City. The Chiefs dominated the visitors with Mahomes in top form. He threw three touchdowns and successfully completed 24 of 33 attempted passes, ending with 272 yards in a 41-10 victory.

On current form, Patrick Mahomes is showing why he's favored to keep his NFL Most Valuable Player crown. If Mahomes and the Chiefs continue to perform, there's every chance he could win the MVP and Super Bowl in consecutive seasons. These are excellent reasons why many of the top-rated sports betting apps have Mahomes as the favorite for the MVP award.

Brock Purdy - San Francisco 49ers (15/2)

Brock Purdy made the PFWA All-Rookie Team in his NFL debut season last year. This was despite only being the final draft pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, which resulted in him getting the "Mr. Irrelevant" title. After injuries to two other 49ers quarterbacks in 2022, the franchise promoted third-choice Purdy to start. Clearly, this happened much earlier than his franchise had anticipated, but he excelled in the role.

Purdy started five regular season games, winning them all. This helped the 49ers to a division title and NFC Championship Game appearance, which he also started. Doing so made him only one of five rookie quarterbacks to accomplish the feat. Sadly, during this game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Purdy tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow.

2023 sees a recovered Brock Purdy return as the starting quarterback for the San Francisco franchise. In Week 1 of the new season, the 49ers visited Pittsburgh and won by 30-7 against the Steelers. Purdy threw 19 successful passes from 29, with two resulting in touchdowns for wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk. He ended with a game total of 220 yards.

Week 2 saw another stellar performance from Purdy away at the Los Angeles Rams. The 49ers emerged victorious by 30-23 with the quarterback successfully throwing 206 yards in the game. He found his man with 17 of his 25 passes. 

The 49ers' first home game of the new season brought a third consecutive win, with Brock Purdy dictating play. In a 30-12 success against the New York Giants, Purdy threw 310 yards, including two touchdown passes included in 25 from 37 during the game.

A year ago Brock Purdy could only have dreamed of being the starting quarterback for his franchise. Now, his teammates call him "Mr. Relevant" and he is currently listed as second-favorite with bookmakers for the NFL MVP award in 2023.

Tua Tagovailoa - Miami Dolphins (9/1)

Tagovailoa's early regular NFL season performances have seen the Dolphins' quarterback's odds shorten. The Hawaiian-born starter has thrown 1024 successful yards in his first three starts of the 2023 season to date. As a result, the Miami franchise has a 100% win record thus far. 

With over 9,000 yards thrown in four completed seasons, it's not surprising that the Dolphins picked up the fifth-year option in Tagovailoa's contract this year. Some online sportsbooks’ odds already make the 25-year-old the favorite for the NFL MVP award this season. Based on his current form, it's not difficult to see why.

In Week 1 of the 2023 season, the Dolphins and Tagovailoa visited Inglewood, home of the Los Angeles Chargers. In a close encounter, the quarterback threw an incredible 466 successful yards with three touchdown passes. In all, Tagovailoa successfully completed 28 out of 45 passes, resulting in a 36-34 Dolphins victory.

Week 2 saw the Dolphins on the road again, this time to face the New England Patriots in Foxborough. Despite a spirited fourth quarter from the hosts, the Miami franchise prevailed 24-17. Tua Tagovailoa was instrumental in the victory, throwing a total of 249 yards. A touchdown pass for wide receiver Tyreek Hill was among his 21 of 30 successes.

The Miami Dolphins returned home in Week 3. The home team ran rampant over the Denver Broncos, winning 70-20. In doing so, the Dolphins recorded a total of 726 total yards during the game, the second-most in league history, and the most since 1951. Tagovailoa contributed 309 of these, throwing four touchdown passes. He was successful with an impressive 23 of the 26 passes he attempted.

If Tua Tagovailoa keeps up this kind of form for most of the season, he'll be hard to beat for the NFL MVP award. Many other potential candidates exist, but consistent form by the three current front-runners should result in yet another quarterback claiming the 2023 NFL MVP honor.