The 2024 NFL regular season is less than a month away, as Thursday Night Football on September 5 features the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs. Yes, exactly 4 weeks from now we will have meaningful football on our television screens.
Speaking of the Ravens and Chiefs, as usual, they boast two of the top favorites to win the NFL MVP Award. Both Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson and Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes have already earned the honor twice, with Jackson winning it last season for a second time.
Who will be the league’s Most Valuable Player in 2024? Let’s take a look at the odds and best bets to make.
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2024 NFL MVP odds
Mahomes, who won this award in 2018 and 2022, is a considerable favorite. A slow start to the 2023 campaign doomed the star quarterback’s chances for a third triumph, but there was little debate over the best player in football after Mahomes led the Chiefs to another Super Bowl victory. Following Mahomes are fellow QBs Josh Allen, C.J. Stroud and Joe Burrow. San Francisco 49ers running back is the first player at a different position to check in on the list.
Odds provided by FanDuel Sportsbook
- Patrick Mahomes +500
- Josh Allen +800
- C.J. Stroud +1000
- Joe Burrow +1000
- Jordan Love +1400
- Lamar Jackson +1500
- Jalen Hurts +1600
- Brock Purdy +1600
- Tua Tagovailoa +2000
- Justin Herbert +2000
- Dak Prescott +2000
- Jared Goff +2500
- Aaron Rodgers +2500
- Matthew Stafford +3000
- Trevor Lawrence +3000
- Kirk Cousins +3000
- Anthony Richardson +3400
- Christian McCaffrey +5000
NFL MVP best bet: Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore Ravens (+1500)
These odds on the reigning MVP are too enticing to pass up. Jackson has won this award twice in the last 5 seasons, which means that in 2 of the last 3 years in which he has stayed healthy the whole time (or at least close to the whole time), he has been MVP of the league. At 27 years old, there is no reason to think Jackson is slowing down – not now and not any time soon. Keep in mind that Jackson did not even have tight end Mark Andrews at his disposal for 7 games in 2023. If his main weapons like Andrews and Zay Flowers can also stay injury-free, Jackson is almost certain to have another humongous season.
NFL MVP longshot: Christian McCaffrey, RB, San Francisco 49ers (+5000)
It is true that the MVP has basically been a QB award over the past decade. Nonetheless, McCaffrey cannot be entirely discounted. It’s not like running backs have never won it. Adrian Peterson most recently racked up the hardware in 2012, ending a stretch of 8 RBs earning top honors dating back to 1991. If the train can get back on the track, it will be McCaffrey who does it. In his first full season with the 49ers, McCaffrey produced 1,459 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns to go along with 67 receptions for 564 yards and 7 more TDs. At super long odds, the former Stanford standout is well worth a sprinkle.