NFL MVP Prediction!

 

We’re a week away from the NFL MVP announcement, but it doesn’t take a formal presentation to know that it’s between Adrian Peterson and Peyton Manning. The stats are nothing short of incredible: AP finished the season a couple yards shy of the all time rushing record on a team with virtually no quarterback. He’s the downhill runner every GM dreams about- the type that can pick up 4 yards for a first down when everyone in the stadium knows the run is coming.

Peyton on the other hand, had an equally impressive season up in Denver with over 4,600 yards, 37 TDs, and only 11 interceptions- the latter being a stat line that has plagued the gunslinger in the past. And what’s the most impressive part about these superstars and their achievements? Both came 1 year after potentially career-ending injuries that left the football world wondering if 2 of the game’s best would ever play again. With that being said, if you don’t think Peyton Manning deserves the MVP, you’re an absolute lunatic and should probably have yourself committed. Like now.

BarstoolSports.com writer, Jake Strasser and I are in complete agreement. We both feel that in any other year, AP is a clear favorite, but 2012 was different. Let’s cut the raw stats out of the equation. Numbers are nice, but it goes deeper than that. Sure, Peterson had a year for the history books, and singlehandedly brought his team to the playoffs in a season where the only other offensive threat, Mr. Migraine himself, Percy Harvin spent 7 games on the bench. That’s all nice and impressive, but Peyton did the same exact thing, only in his case, it was with a brand new team.

First of all, NFL moves of this magnitude are rare to begin with, but Peyton going from Indianapolis to Denver is one of the biggest we’ve seen over the last couple decades. Coming into a new system is hard for everybody- everybody that’s human that is. Peyton is a freak. Peyton is on another level. Peyton is a man among boys. He didn’t just come into the mile high city and acclimate to the new offense, picking it up as he goes. No, he DOMINATED the system. He recreated the system. He essentially resumed his unofficial role as simultaneous quarterback/offensive coordinator/head coach that he spent years as in Indy. I’m not knocking AP- the guy is an incredible athlete, has great vision, and can read a defense as well as any running back in the league. But when you have a guy like Peyton who can come into a brand new system and make it his own the way he did, all other candidates go out the window.

One more thing: Peyton Manning is 36… Thirty. Six. Did you say 26? No…36, as in a couple years away from a Just for Men, Touch of Grey endorsement deal. AP is a ripe 27 year-old in the prime of his career. Granted, AP’s ACL injury was just as severe as Peyton’s neck issue, but it’s much easier for a young, spry athlete like AP to get back into playing shape than a guy who has been alive for the majority of 5 decades. If for no other reason, give the MVP to Peyton as a lifetime achievement award like the thing Jody Foster just won at the Golden Globes. Let’s just hope Peyton’s speech is about 40 minutes shorter.