Has Ravens QB Lamar Jackson Locked Up the MVP Already?
The league MVP race has seemed to be wide-open for the entire season. Not that anyone pays attention to it until the calendar turns to November, but with the season-long performances by players like San Francisco's Brock Purdy and Christian McCaffrey, Dallas' Dak Prescott, and Buffalo's Josh Allen, the discussion started a bit earlier this season.
After an MVP-like performance against the AFC East-leading Dolphins last week, Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson not only emerged as the front-runner with one week left in the regular season but might be running away with it.
Tommy Gilligan, USA TODAY Sports
Per DraftKings, entering Week 17, Jackson was the favorite, but just barely, at -160. Just behind him was McCaffrey at +400. After Jackson's dominating performance against the Dolphins, Jackson has jumped to the overwhelming favorite at -20000. McCaffrey has fallen all the way back to No. 4 at +2000.
Second on the list after Week 17 is Prescott at +1200, followed by Allen at +2000. McCaffrey's teammate Purdy has fallen all the way to fifth at +3500 after his four-interception performance against the Ravens in Week 16.
Heading into the final game of the season, it would take something catastrophic for Jackson to NOT win his second MVP award.
The 2016 Heisman Trophy winner and 2019 MVP has thrown for 3,672 yards with a 67.2 percent completion rate with 24 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He's also run for 821 yards and another five scores.
The Ravens have locked down the AFC's No. 1 seed in the upcoming playoffs, which comes with a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout. Jackson may not have an opportunity to add to his massive 2023 numbers if coach John Harbaugh decides to rest him and some of the other starters with nothing on the line against the Steelers in Week 18.
“I have not made any decisions on personnel yet,” Harbaugh said, via video from the team. “We’ve got to kind of work through the injury part of it first. That’ll take us probably 24 to 48 hours to get a real handle on that, and then we’ll make those decisions. We’re not going to keep it a secret. We’ll let you know what we’re going to do once we start practicing.”
