The Case for Tom Brady as MVP

With the 2016/17 regular season coming to a close, it’s time for the NFL to hand out their annual awards. This year was unusually difficult to come up with a clear MVP. With so many teams failing to meet expectations players that usually vie for these awards ended up falling short. Last years most valuable player, Cam Newton, finished with over 40 total TD’s and led the Panthers to a Superbowl appearance. This year, Newton threw for less touchdowns, more interceptions and failed to make the playoffs. This opened the field for different players to make a run for the NFL’s most coveted individual award.

Among the league leaders was our very own Tom Brady. The fact that he is even in the discussion despite only playing twelve games plays heavily in his favor. As everyone knows, Brady was required to serve a four game suspension due to his involvement in Deflategate. The Patriots were able to go 3-1 without Brady which was surprising to everyone outside of New England. Once Brady returned, he came back with a mission. His season was essentially a big middle finger to Goodell and the NFL.

Brady went 11-1 this season, while amassing over 3,500 yards and 28 touchdowns. This would be impressive for most quarterbacks over a 16 game season, but not for Brady. One of the most impressive stats he has is the fact that he only threw 2 interceptions. This set the record for the best TD to INT ratio by a quarterback. He also finished second in passer rating and top ten in touchdowns.

One of his biggest competitions among quarterbacks is Matt Ryan. Playing with the talents of Julio Jones and two dominant running backs gives Ryan a massive upside when it comes to producing numbers. Brady had his usual rag tag group of receivers, with his best pass catchers missing time or suffering from injuries. Gronkowski, Amendola, and Dion Lewis have all missed time this year, only adding to Brady’s impressive season. Producing with backup receivers is normal for Brady, but it doesn’t make it any less of a feat.

MVP’s can be a tricky award to give out, especially when no one had a stellar season. There was no dominant offensive team and no defensive powerhouse. However Brady, at the ripe old age of 39 continues to produce winning seasons with an undermanned roster. Another MVP is very possible for the New England quarterback.