The MVP is Right in Front of Joe Burrow
It’s the time of year where Christmas trees are up in the family room. Where televisions across America are playing “The Grinch.” Where buying and wrapping presents for loved ones has taken the place of some of your usual nightly hobbies.
It’s also the time of the year where Joe Burrow seemingly gets more and more relevant. And as he continues to win games and light up the box score, he also continues to ascend in MVP odds. According to DraftKings SportsBook, Joe Burrow is tied 3rd in MVP odds with Josh Allen at +1000 behind Jalen Hurts (-150) and Patrick Mahomes (+165). For those unfamiliar with these odds, you’d profit $1,000 off of a $100 bet on Burrow should he win MVP.
While +1000 odds with just three weeks to go seems like a long shot, there’s a path to winning his first MVP.
Jalen Hurts (who currently sits atop the race) suffered a shoulder injury in the Eagles’ week 15 win over the Bears. He may miss no time; he may miss 3 weeks. And as unfortunate as it is, it’s the nature of the game. Still winning MVP after missing the final weeks of a season is very unlikely given the importance and magnitude of these games.
Patrick Mahomes is likely going to be the toughest obstacle for Joe Burrow to overcome. His remaining schedule is not great and he’s fighting for the Number 1 overall seed. But he did in fact lose to and get outplayed by Joe Burrow a few weeks ago. Looking at his schedule from the other perspective, Mahomes has no room for a bad game. A sloppy game or a loss to a Seattle team who is a 9.5 point underdog would certainly hurt Mahomes’ chances. Or how about the same against a 4-10 Broncos team? Or the 6-8 Raiders?
Josh Allen, who I mentioned is tied with Burrow at 3rd in the race, visits the Bengals on January 2nd.
Monday Night Football.
Huge Playoff Implications
Massive MVP Shifting Potential
Josh Allen may be unlike any other human in this league but he hasn’t played in the Jungle against Lou Anarumo’s defense or Burrow for that matter.
Burrow gets the Patriots, Bills and Ravens to close the season. He may downplay these things when speaking to the media because he cares about winning above all. But he’s human too and he’ll be receiving that new contract rather soon. With the division and 1 seed in sight, bet against #9 at your own risk…
