Rams QB Matthew Stafford named NFL MVP
After weeks of anticipation, Los Angeles Rams star quarterback Matthew Stafford earned the NFL’s Most Valuable Player award.
Stafford narrowly edged out New England Patriots emerging star quarterback Drake Maye by finishing with 366 vote points to 361 points. He received 24 out of the 50 first-place votes while Maye garnered 23 first-place votes.
It marked the closest race since Peyton Manning and Steve McNair were co-winners in 2003. Throughout the regular season, it became a race between Stafford and Maye to secure the prestigious honor.
However, Stafford showcased enough to receive the voting edge to become the oldest player in NFL history at the time of his first MVP award. He also became the third-oldest player to earn the honor behind Tom Brady (2017) and Aaron Rodgers (2021).
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Stafford became the fourth Rams player to be named MVP, joining Hall of Famers Kurt Warner and Marshall Faulk, along with Roman Gabriel. He was the first player to win MVP for a team outside the top two playoff seeds since Adrian Peterson in 2012.
Since the 1970 AFL/NFL merger, he became the ninth player to have won MVP for a non-division winner. Although the Rams didn’t secure the NFC West division title, Stafford helped guide them to a 12-5 record and fifth seed in the NFC Playoff picture.
He was remarkably consistent throughout the season by leading the league with 4,707 passing yards and a career-high 46 passing touchdowns to just eight interceptions, while the Rams had the No. 1 scoring offense at 30.5 points per game.
Beyond earning the award, he declared that he will return for his 18th season.
“I’ll see you guys next year,” said Stafford via ESPN. “Hopefully, I’m not at this event, and we’re getting ready for another game at SoFi.”
