NFL MVP Stock Watch, Week 2: Josh Jacobs debuts
By Dustin Baker
Who are the frontrunners for the MVP award after Week 1?
This is the second installment of Fansided‘s 17-part series of MVP award analysis. Each week, the top five players in contention to take home the NFL’s most esteemed individual award will be examined.
The series is a running tabulation of statistics, player performance, and of course, impact on team success. In that respect, this analysis should considered a linear or non-episodic process. For example, Chicago Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky nearly made the cut this week but fell just short to the Las Vegas Raiders Josh Jacobs.
Going forward to remain on the MVP Stock Watch, Jacobs must keep up the pace. If he arrives at Week 2 only to rush for 20 yards and no touchdowns, he likely will not be apart of the following week’s rankings.
Two players exit the rankings from last week — Christian McCaffrey and Saquon Barkley. McCaffrey had a wonderful game, but his team, the Carolina Panthers, lost at home to Jacobs’ Raiders. Temporarily, at least, McCaffrey tumbles down the list.
As for Barkley, the third-year back played with zest but not enough to crack the top five MVP Watch.
After Week 1, here are the top five MVP award contenders for 2020.
**Please note: This series will consider sportsbooks odds but will largely weigh individual statistics and impact on the team by the particular player.