The majority of NFL executives and scouts anonymously polled this week by ESPN chose Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes to win the 2024 NFL MVP Award.
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In the poll conducted by ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, more than 60 percent of those asked predicted that Mahomes will win his third career MVP.
Fowler did not reveal numerical results for any other player, but he noted that Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love also received votes.
After winning his second NFL MVP Award in 2022 by virtue of throwing for a league-high 5,250 yards and 41 touchdowns, Mahomes' production dropped off significantly last season.
Mahomes struggled to find a go-to wide receiver for much of the season before then-rookie Rashee Rice emerged in the second half, and tight end Travis Kelce wasn't his usual dominant self either.
All of that led to a somewhat pedestrian stat line of 4,183 yards, 27 touchdowns and a career-high 14 interceptions for Mahomes, who was not an MVP finalist and finished only seventh in the voting.
None of that seemed to matter come playoff time, though, as Mahomes raised his level of play by throwing for 1,051 yards, six touchdowns and one interception in four playoff games, leading the Chiefs to their second consecutive Super Bowl win.
After watching Mahomes close the season on a high note, an anonymous NFC executive expressed their belief that Mahomes will bounce back in a big way during the 2024 regular season, saying: "He'll be even better next year. I think they have the speed to help Mahomes get his deep ball back. He and Kelce seem very motivated by a three-peat and the pressure that comes with it."
The Kansas City front office clearly worked to address the skill-position players around Mahomes during the offseason, as they signed wideout Hollywood Brown in free agency and used a first-round pick on speedy wide receiver Xavier Worthy.
While Brown is out for at least the first game of the season due to a dislocated shoulder, he was not placed on injured reserve, which suggests the Chiefs expect him to play within the first month and bring some much-needed speed to the outside.
Kansas City even re-signed veteran receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, who was Mahomes' leading pass-catcher at wide receiver in 2022 with 78 grabs for 933 yards and three touchdowns.
Mahomes clearly has a much deeper and more talented group of receivers this season than he did in 2023, and if he was able to win a Super Bowl with that supporting cast last season, the sky is the limit for the superstar signal-caller in 2024.
