Every NFL Honors has a number of awards given out to deserving players, but the Most Valuable Player is above everything else. Besides Super Bowls, the MVP is something that can define a career.
Matthew Stafford Has Been Named the NFL 2026 Most Valuable Player
For this award, this season’s finalists were Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen, Jacksonville Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence, New England Patriots QB Drake Maye, San Francisco 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey, and Los Angeles Rams QB Matthew Stafford.
Although each player had an excellent season and all had different arguments for the award, one person had to be chosen, and that person is Stafford. Here is how the votes ended up:
AP NFL MVP
1. Matthew Stafford 366 points, 24 first-place votes
2. Drake Maye 361, 23
3. Josh Allen 91, 2
4. Christian McCaffrey 71, 0
5. Trevor Lawrence 49, 0
Justin Herbert got the other first-place vote.— Rob Maaddi (@RobMaaddi) February 6, 2026
Looking at Stafford’s season, he completely deserved the award. Per PFSN’s QB Impact Metric, in the 2025/26 season, Stafford was 1st in passing yards (4707), 1st in passing touchdowns (46), third in passes completed (388), and 4th in net yards per attempt (7.60). Although the rushing game seen in today’s NFL is not part of Stafford’s game, he was an excellent passer all year, elevating the Rams’ offense to another level (ranked first in PFSN’s Offensive Impact Metric).
Even with the excellent season Stafford had, as the votes show, the race for MVP was a tight one, and the last time we saw it this close was back in 2003.
Matthew Stafford edged Drake Maye for the AP NFL Most Valuable Player award in the closest race since Peyton Manning and Steve McNair were co-winners in 2003.
Stafford received 24 of 50 first-place votes while Maye got 23. Stafford finished with 366 points to Maye’s 361.— Rob Maaddi (@RobMaaddi) February 6, 2026
In the end, the MVP race came down to one vote, and if that vote had gone to Maye, we would have had another co-winner situation, just like in 2003. Instead, that vote went to Los Angeles Chargers QB Justin Herbert, who was not even a part of the final five players for MVP.
Maye also had one of the best arguments for the award, but to the voters, Stafford was just a bit better.
Now, we can officially say, for his excellent 2025 season, Stafford is the MVP, no matter how close it was at the end.
Editor’s Note: This is a breaking news story and will be updated throughout the day as more information becomes available.
