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Who will win NFL MVP?
It's the same question we're asking every week as this season nears its midway point. During Week 7, some top MVP contenders suffered bad losses that created some shake-ups near the top of MVP power rankings. But the top spot remains the same as it did a week ago thanks to a well-timed bye for the holder of the No. 1 spot.
Further down the list, a different running back replaces Kansas City Chiefs star Kenneth Walker as the sole non-quarterback in the top 10. Walker's dreadful outing against the Seattle Seahawks on "Sunday Night Football" was enough of a detriment to his MVP case to push him off the list, at least for now.
Here's how the full list of 10 players — plus the usual pair of honorable mentions — shakes out (with previous rank in parentheses):
There is no change at the top as the Buffalo Bills enjoyed a Week 7 bye. Josh Allen is still tied for the league lead in fourth-quarter comebacks (3). He's also the "new" league leader in yards per attempt (8.8) and per completion (13.2) as previous leader Lamar Jackson's missed time means he no longer qualifies for rate stats.
Allen's abilities and performance with his legs — in addition to what he's been able to do with his arm — are very significant parts of his MVP candidacy. While leading the league in several passing categories, he's also still tied for the NFL lead with eight rushing touchdowns – and the three players he's tied with have all played one more game. Allen's 240 rushing yards also lead all quarterbacks through seven weeks.
With more than half a season left to play, the MVP award is already looking more and more like Allen's to lose.
Poor performances and a bye from the players ahead of Joe Burrow last week aided his leap, which is mostly anchored by his excellent performance in an intra-divisional game in Week 7. After a subpar first half in which every Cincinnati Bengals drive ended in a punt, Burrow led his team's offense on five straight touchdown drives to open the second half. He threw the touchdown on four of those drives.
The Bengals' quarterback is now tied for second in the NFL with 15 touchdown throws despite playing in one fewer game than the other two signal-callers with at least as many touchdown passes. Burrow's 71.7% completion rate leads the league. His 275.5 yards per game are fifth in the NFL. He's thrown just three interceptions. Most importantly, the Bengals are now 4-2 and just half a game back from first in the AFC North — the conference's best division so far this year.
A productive bye week for the second former first overall pick on this list. Like the Bills, the Jacksonville Jaguars did not play in Week 7. Trevor Lawrence moved up nonetheless, thanks to some poor performances we'll get to in a moment.
Even with just six games under his belt like Burrow, Lawrence is still among league leaders in passing touchdowns, with 14 so far. His 7.6% touchdown-throw percentage leads the NFL. In his second season playing in head coach Liam Coen's offense, Lawrence has looked incredibly comfortable. He's been throwing with anticipation, providing excellent ball placement to his receivers and letting it rip with hard throws when he needs to. This version of Lawrence is what everyone expected when he was the Prince Who Was Promised, the former Clemson quarterback crowned a future No. 1 pick by the end of his first college season.
Brock Purdy, what happened? After four weeks of nearly flawless football — four weeks without taking a sack — the San Francisco 49ers' quarterback has taken multiple sacks in three consecutive games and now has a multi-interception game on his 2026 résumé. It wasn't a great look that those two interceptions came against a Falcons team that only had one pick entering the game, at the time tied with the Cowboys and Jets for fewest this year.
Purdy's first interception this week happened because he didn't throw the ball away far enough out of bounds, which let Jessie Bates make a play. The second was because he didn't see Kendal Daniels drifting back over the middle, he said.
Still, one bad game doesn't erase Purdy's six far better outings – which helped get the Niners out to a 6-0 start. The former Mr. Irrelevant just needs to cut down on mental mistakes like his first interception and get San Francisco back in the win column to push himself back up the list.
The Kansas City Chiefs had no answer for a Seahawks defense that was extra motivated to shut down their lead running back. As Walker struggled to a season-low 36 rushing yards on 14 carries, Patrick Mahomes was similarly stymied. The two-time MVP threw for a season-low 165 passing yards and tossed his fourth interception of the season. Kansas City did not score until late in the third quarter with a 50-yard field goal, and the "Sunday Night Football" game ended without a Chiefs touchdown.
As with Purdy, one very bad game can't and shouldn't erase the five excellent outings Mahomes had before. Like the 49ers, the Chiefs were undefeated entering Week 7. So long as Walker gets back on track in Week 8, the offense should open back up for Mahomes – like it had for five games prior – and clear more of a pathway to his chase for a third career MVP award.
Drake Maye and the New England Patriots lost on "Thursday Night Football," but the quarterback's excellent outing against a tough Chicago Bears defense still pushed him up the power rankings. Last year's MVP runner-up finished 24-of-31 (77.4%) on pass attempts for 321 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Maye also had 26 rushing yards – which led the Pats on Thursday – and a touchdown on four carries.
The Patriots' quarterback is now up to four straight games with multiple touchdown passes. If you include his rushing score in Week 7, he's also been responsible for at least three touchdowns in those four games. While Maye's rough start to the season still leaves him tied for the league lead in picks (8), there's no denying the version we've seen in recent weeks is closer to the 2025 version that took the league by storm.
Caleb Williams is movin' on up in his second game back from his hamstring injury. The Chicago Bears' quarterback reintroduced himself to the league — and this list — with a show-stopping performance against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 6. Against the Patriots in Week 7, Williams put together a second consecutive 300-yard performance and threw two touchdowns.
Chicago is 5-2 and second in the NFC North behind only the undefeated Vikings. Williams, like Lawrence, has come into his own as a former No. 1 overall pick, balling out in his second full season under an offensive-minded head coach. Some of his plays against the Patriots were absurd, with the best one being the throw to Rome Odunze on third-and-9 from the shadow of the Bears' end zone in the fourth quarter.
Welcome to the top 10, Jared Goff. Detroit's back-and-forth 2-2 start to the 2026 season has kept things quiet, but the Lions' starter is off to a phenomenal start. Through seven weeks, he now leads the NFL in yards per game (298) and passer rating (112.5). Goff is also tied for third with 14 passing touchdowns in six games and has yet to throw an interception this year.
Goff's performance in the Lions' first divisional game of the season was arguably his best of the year: 22-of-32 on pass attempts for 303 yards, two touchdowns and, of course, no interceptions. With the Week 7 outing against the Green Bay Packers, Goff became the first quarterback in NFL history with 200 Pass Yards, a Pass TD, and 0 INT in each of their team's first 6 games of a season, according to Pro Football Focus. Detroit has more tough tests ahead, with five more games against NFC North opponents, but Goff has started hot.
One key factor in Goff's strong start is Jahmyr Gibbs's outstanding play through six games. The Lions' star running back leads the NFL in touches (166) and rushing first downs (42). He's also tied for the lead in scrimmage touchdowns (9), third in rushing yards per game (103.3) and second in rushes for 10+ yards (21).
Much as Walker has opened up the Chiefs' offense to more passing success with play-action, Gibbs has served a similar role for the Lions. Detroit, like Kansas City, runs play-action at one of the highest rates in the NFL. Without Gibbs' prowess as a rusher, the Lions' offense would look far more one-dimensional, and Goff wouldn't be having the level of success he has so far. That's a big reason why Gibbs deserves MVP buzz.
Another week with Lamar Jackson out due to his ankle injury meant he fell two pass attempts short of qualifying for Pro Football Reference's rate stats. It's too bad, given he'd be the NFL leader in yards per attempt (10.1) and third in completion rate (70.8%) heading into Week 8.
But one of the best abilities in an MVP race is availability. Jackson couldn't return against the Bengals in Week 7 despite returning to practice in a limited capacity. Baltimore is now 1-2 in games without their two-time MVP starting behind center. The Ravens, at 4-3, have fallen to last place in a contentious AFC North.
A wide receiver has never won an NFL MVP award, but Jaxon Smith-Njigba sure is making a push to be the first. The history (or lack thereof) of wideout MVPs is why the Seahawks' star receiver isn't a numbered member of the power rankings. But Smith-Njigba is off to a phenomenal start: a league-leading 123.9 receiving yards per game, a league-leading eight touchdown catches and a league-leading 14.7 yards per touch.
Entering Week 8, Smith-Njigba has just one game with fewer than 100 yards. He has only two games with fewer than 120. He has had at least one touchdown catch in five of the Seahawks' first seven games. After Walker's Week 7 dud, Smith-Njigba is more of a shoo-in for a second straight Offensive Player of the Year award, at least. Could the MVP be a possibility?
With the Dallas Cowboys' defense struggling again in 2026, Dallas has needed its offense — more specifically, its quarterback — to step up and perform. So far, perform, Dak Prescott has. The Cowboys' veteran signal-caller has his team's offense ranked fifth in points per game, while he ranks seventh in success rate (49.3%) and passing touchdowns (13), as well as eighth in yards per game (264.4).
In a subpar NFC East, the Cowboys appear to be contenders to win the division despite their defensive woes. Prescott is a significant part of that, as proven by his three-touchdown night against the Eagles in prime time.
For 14 years, NC State employed Dave Doeren for millions of dollars — and never enjoyed a 10-win season.
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