NFL MVP tracker: Matthew Stafford claws his way into conversation
From Week 1 through Week 17, USA TODAY Sports' NFL staff will be handicapping the race for league MVP.
A first-place vote is worth five points, a second-place vote is worth three, and a third-place vote is worth one.
Our MVP tracker through Week 9's games:
1. QB Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons (31 points): For the seventh straight week, he leads our poll. Ryan heads home to Philadelphia this weekend with a chance to pad his league-best passing totals (2,980 yards and 23 TDs) against an Eagles secondary that struggled last Sunday. Ryan, who has just four interceptions, is on pace to easily eclipse his personal bests for yards, TDs, TD-to-INT ratio, completion percentage and passer rating. But Atlanta will probably have to win the NFC South, at minimum, for him to hold off the competition. Last week: 1
USA TODAY Sports' Week 10 NFL picks
2. QB Tom Brady, New England Patriots (11 points): To some — we mean you, New Englanders — he's already a slam dunk. But Brady's candidacy will be debated given his four-game suspension to start the season, plus the fact the Pats went 3-1 without him. Still, he has yet to be picked off in 134 attempts this season and is currently on pace to complete 73.1% of his passes and post a QB rating of 133.9, which would both obliterate the current single-season league records. And, yes, the polls will remain open for another eight weeks. Last week: 2
3. QB Derek Carr, Oakland Raiders (8 points): The Silver & Black sit alone atop the AFC West entering their bye week. Much of that credit goes to Carr, who's blossoming into a superstar in his third season and has done a superb job making plays (17 TD passes), avoiding mistakes (3 INTs despite a league-high 354 throws) and relieving pressure on a poor Oakland defense. Last week: 3
Cowboys legend Roger Staubach: 'Right now, it’s Dak’s locker room'
4. QB Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys (5 points): Recovered Tony Romo is officially an alternative in Big D, but Prescott has provided no signs he's going to surrender the job for a team that's won its last seven games, largely thanks to his stellar play. Prescott's 104.2 QB rating would be a rookie record if he can maintain it. But he's got big tests ahead, with his next two road games in Pittsburgh and Minnesota. Last week: 4
5. QB Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions (4 points): This season's version of Captain Comeback, he's led game-winning drives in all five of the Lions' wins. His post-Megatron brilliance was never more evident than Sunday, when he completed two passes for 35 yards (in 21 seconds) to put Detroit in position for a game-tying field goal at the end of regulation. Stafford then proceeded to carve up the Vikings' vaunted defense in overtime, hitting five of six passes for 73 yards, including a 28-yard game-winning TD to Golden Tate that prevented Minnesota from ever touching the ball again. Last week: Unranked
Others receiving votes: Ezekiel Elliott (3 points), Von Miller (1)
— Week 8 MVP rankings (Matt Ryan)
— Week 7 MVP rankings (Matt Ryan)
— Week 6 MVP rankings (Matt Ryan)
— Week 5 MVP rankings (Matt Ryan)
— Week 4 MVP rankings (Matt Ryan)
— Week 3 MVP rankings (Matt Ryan)
— Week 2 MVP rankings (Ben Roethlisberger)
— Week 1 MVP rankings (Antonio Brown)
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Follow Nate Davis on Twitter @ByNateDavis
PHOTOS: Week 10 games ranked by watchability
