A total of three quarterbacks head into Week 11 with legit MVP hopes. That includes Russell Wilson, Lamar Jackson and Deshaun Watson.
A bit further down on the pecking order, Tom Brady returns from his bye in need of a better performance for the defending champion Patriots. Meanwhile, likely NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Kyler Murray makes his first appearance in this list.
As we’ve done throughout the 2019 season, here’s a look at the top-10 NFL quarterbacks heading into Week 11.
1- Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs
The reigning NFL MVP returned like gangbusters in Week 10 after a two-game hiatus. All Mahomes did was complete 36-of-50 passes for 446 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions in a narrow loss to the Tennessee Titans. If it weren’t for major struggles on defense, it would have led to another win for Mahomes.
Heading into Week 11, the third-year quarterback is on pace for 4,600 yards with 32 touchdowns and two interceptions. That seems pretty decent. It’s also good enough for him to reclaim the No. 1 spot in our weekly rankings.
2- Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks
This MVP front runner was in no way himself in a narrow overtime win over the San Francisco 49ers Monday night. Wilson threw what should have been a costly interception in the final stanza and lost a fumble in the fourth quarter. A player that entered Week 10 with two total turnovers struggled against a top-notch defense.
This isn’t to discredit Wilson. He still led Seattle on the game-winning drive in overtime and has been nails all season. The Super Bowl quarterback heads into the team’s Week 11 bye having thrown for 2,737 yards with a league-high 23 touchdowns and just two interceptions.
3- Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens
Most. Valuable. Player. With victories against Seattle and New England over the past month, Jackson has more than put his name into the MVP conversation. In fact, he’s right up there with the above-mentioned Russell Wilson.
Here’s a dude that’s a human highlight reel waiting to happen. Just ask the Cincinnati Bengals, who were absolutely embarrassed by the second-year quarterback last week. All Jackson has done heading into Week 11 is compile north of 2,700 total yards with 21 touchdowns and just five interceptions. He’s a generational talent and has proven it at every turn as a sophomore.
4- Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
It didn’t come easy, but Rodgers and his Packers were able to rebound from a disastrous Week 9 performance to take out a game Carolina Panthers team this past Sunday. It was nothing more than a workmanlike performance from Rodgers and Co. in the snow. With one exception.
The former league MVP completed 17-of-29 passes for 233 yards without a touchdown or an interception. He’s now thrown just one touchdown over the past two games. Even then, Rodgers has 17 scores and just two interceptions en route to leading his Pack to an 8-2 mark through 10 weeks.
5- Deshaun Watson, Houston Texans
Dealing with an eye injury, Houston’s Week 10 bye could not have come at a better time for Watson. He appears to be completely healed and ready to take on the second half of the season for the first-place Texans.
Watson heads into an important Week 11 game against Baltimore on pace for north of 4,800 total yards with 41 touchdowns. If it weren’t for Jackson and Wilson, he’d be a legit MVP candidate. A win over the above-mentioned Jackson in Week 11 could put Watson in said conversation.
6- Kirk Cousins, Minnesota Vikings
Cousins’ recent performance is hard to ignore. Sure any talk of him being a legit MVP candidate is overblown, but he’s turned things around in a big way. The high-priced veteran has put up 15 touchdowns compared to one interception for a 124.4 passer rating over the past six games. It’s not a coincidence that the Vikes are 5-1 during that span.
The one issue here is that Cousins continues to struggle throwing the ball down the field. He’s been relying a whole lot on Dalvin Cook and the screen game. Whether that remains an issue down the stretch is not yet known.
7- Tom Brady, New England Patriots
Fresh off a much-needed bye, Mr. Brady and his Pats enter the stretch run with an 8-1 record and two games ahead of the Buffalo Bills in the AFC East. However, it’s been much more about New England’s defense than its future Hall of Fame quarterback.
Brady heads into Week 11 with 14 touchdown passes and five interceptions. His 93.1 quarterback rating is 18th-best among qualified signal callers. Brady has also fumbled the ball a surprising three times over the past four games. This has to be considered at least a bit concerning.
8- Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
Prescott’s Week 10 performance against the Minnesota Vikings on “Sunday Night Football” was legendary. He picked apart one of the NFL’s most-talented defenses to the tune of 28-of-46 passing for nearly 400 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. Though, that pick came on a Hail Mary with Dallas in desperation mode.
In no way are we going to blame Prescott for Dallas’ narrow loss and 5-4 record. He’s picked it up big time as a fourth-year player. The contract-year quarterback is currently on pace for nearly 5,000 passing yards to go with 37 total touchdowns and 16 interceptions.
9- Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals
The likely NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year makes his first appearance on this list. For good reason. The dynamic Murray has been absolutely sensational for an otherwise bad Cardinals team through 10 weeks. He just recently broke the rookie record for most consecutive pass attempts without an interception.
All said, the reigning Heisman winner has put up 2,904 total yards with 14 touchdowns and just five interceptions in 10 games. He now has the task of taking on a league-best 49ers pass defense that held Russell Wilson to his worst performance since December of last season. This is an incredible opportunity for Mr. Murray.
10- Derek Carr, Oakland Raiders
For the first time all season, Carr makes an appearance on this weekly list. And for good reason. After struggling in his first season under Jon Gruden, Carr is currently in the midst of a career-best season and has his Raiders as surprise playoff contenders.
Carr vastly outplayed Philip Rivers in last week’s win over the Los Angeles Chargers. He’s now accounted for six touchdowns and zero interceptions over the past three games, culminating in a stellar 113.1 quarterback rating. Carr’s performance this season has been among the most surprising we’ve seen around the league.