NFL MVP odds: Lamar Jackson overtakes Patrick Mahomes for the top spot

Lamar Jackson, an MVP favorite? What a coincidence. The two-time league MVP and reigning honoree is at +250 odds at BetMGM to do it again in 2024, surpassing Patrick Mahomes (+400).

Three other quarterbacks follow Jackson and Mahomes in the odds. Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is at +550, Detroit's Jared Goff is at +700 and Houston's CJ Stroud rounds out the top five at +1100.

Lamar's world

In Week 7, where many MVP candidates competed, Jackson was the biggest star of them all. The Ravens QB threw five touchdown passes and 281 yards, giving him a near-perfect passer rating (158.1) in a win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football. On a night when Jackson led the Ravens to their fifth straight win, he threw as many touchdown passes as incompletions and rushed for 52 yards. Through seven games, the Louisville product has now accumulated 15 touchdowns, two interceptions, 1,810 passing yards (fifth in the NFL), a 74.3 QBR (second in the NFL) and 455 rushing yards (most among QBs).

Jackson once again proves his generational status. He is the focal point of an offense that leads the league not only in scoring (31.1 points per game), but also in total yards (461.4 per game) and rushing yards (210.9 per game). A third MVP would put Jackson in a rare situation. There are six players in NFL history with three or more league MVPs – Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Brett Favre, Johnny Unitas and Jim Brown.

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The other top dogs

Neither Mahomes nor Brock Purdy (three interceptions, dropping his MVP odds to +2200) looked like real MVP candidates in Sunday's Super Bowl LVIII rematch. The Chiefs star was able to keep KC undefeated, although with rather poor passing numbers (154 yards, two interceptions). However, the two-time league MVP made magic on the ground, highlighted by a 33-yard scramble that sparked his own touchdown rush that gave KC two possessions in the fourth quarter.

Mahomes still has a path to winning MVP, especially if the Chiefs go undefeated. But again, KC isn't relying solely on Mahomes, who has thrown six touchdowns and eight interceptions this year (a league-high). No. 15 is fortunate to be able to rely on a defense that allows 17.2 points per game (fifth best in the NFL).

Meanwhile, Allen is firmly in contention after leading the Bills to 5-2 with 323 yards and two touchdown passes in his 100th regular-season start. Allen led the Bills back from a 10-0 deficit against the Tennessee Titans and scored 34 straight points to end the game. Given the emergence of rookie Keon Coleman (125 yards) and newcomer Amari Cooper, who stepped right into the offense and scored his first touchdown since Week 3 in his Bills debut, Allen appears to have a viable corps of weapons.

The most impressive stats for Allen? Through seven games, the former All-Pro QB is No. 1 in the NFL in QBR (77.6) and has yet to throw a pick. What progress for a player who threw 10 or more picks in five of his six seasons.

NFL MVP odds

MVP candidates compete against each other

One of the best battles among the MVP candidates in Week 7 came in the NFC North, as Goff and the Lions defeated the undefeated Minnesota Vikings and Sam Darnold (+1600). Goff's arsenal of weapons continues to benefit the veteran quarterback as he completed 22 of 25 yards for 280 yards and two scores. His poise on the game-winning drive led to Jake Bates scoring the go-ahead score with 15 seconds left. Goff, a Cal product, has been extremely accurate this year. Sunday was his fourth straight game in which he completed over 70 percent of his passes. After throwing four picks in the first three weeks, Goff threw seven touchdowns and no interceptions in the last three games.

In Green Bay, Jordan Love (+1400) beat another MVP candidate in Stroud. The Packers defense suffocated Stroud (86 yards) and pulled out a last-second win over the Texans while Love continued his double agent play (three touchdown passes, two interceptions). However, you can't say he isn't playing at an elite level with 15 TD passes in five games. He has a shot at MVP, but if he doesn't manage to tie for a league-high eight interceptions, he could be left behind.

A dark horse to keep an eye on

One name I want to mention is Ravens star Derrick Henry (+4000). Lowest odds for a non-QB: The King leads the NFL in rushing yards (873), is tied for the highest in the league with eight rushing scores and concedes a whopping 6.5 yards per carry. With his second receiving score of the year in the win over the Bucs, Henry has had success in every game this season, including three multi-TD games. Now I get it: the MVP is usually a QB award and Henry has the QB that might be the best in the game right now, but Henry has the makings of an MVP case.

He may have to settle for the Offensive Player of the Year award, an award he won during the 2020 season and for which he currently has the NFL's best odds of +110. But at this rate, he's on pace to surpass Eric Dickerson's vaunted mark of 2,105 rushing yards in a season.

A third rushing crown and an MVP trophy? This would further cement Henry's status as a future Hall of Famer.

(Photo by Lamar Jackson: Mike Ehrmann / Getty Images)