In December 2024, Lamar Jackson was leading the MVP race with an average of 2 TDs and 250 passing yards until December. But then came Josh Allen’s resurgence. He started going for 3 TDs and 320 yards on average and, in the end, won the MVP trophy. Are we going to witness the same with Dak Prescott and Matthew Stafford this year? Skip Bayless thinks so.
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Dak completed 320 passing yards, 2 TDs, and 1 INT with a QB rating of 100.4, helping the Dallas Cowboys beat the Kansas City Chiefs 31-28 at a full-house AT&T Stadium on Thursday. Indeed, he had to endure a tough fight from Patrick Mahomes, who recorded 261 passing yards, 4 TDs, and a 129.7 rating. But Mahomes was sacked three times, and the Cowboys’ defense, led by Jadeveon Clowney, helped the Cowboys in a big way.
With two wins against two Super Bowl teams (Eagles, Chiefs) inside four days, Skip was full of excitement. He argued that the Cowboys are now the best-performing team in the NFC and will make it to the playoffs with an 11-5-1 record. Most importantly, he argued that Dak now has the better odds to become the NFL MVP over Matthew Stafford, a take that could surprise many analysts.
“Dak Prescott has crept ahead of Matthew Stafford in the MVP race,” Skip said, before explaining his reasons for such a hot take. “I’ve been pushing Matt for MVP for three/four weeks now. But after you beat Philly and come back and beat Kansas City, and just destroy these two defenses… two top-five defenses… with almost 500 yards against both of them, tell me I am wrong. Lord have mercy, Dak Prescott is the MVP,” he concluded.
After the Cowboys vs. Chiefs game, Dak leads NFL QBs in passing yards (3,261) with an impressive 25 TDs and 8 INTs. He has been sacked 17 times. In comparison, Matthew, who has not been intercepted since Week 3, has recorded 2,830 passing yards, 30 TDs (better than Dak), and 2 INTs. The Rams’ 9-2 record also bolsters his chances to win the award next year.
While it is tough to pick sides, Dak did have a dip in performance in a few games (188 passing yards against the Broncos), while Matthew has been fairly consistent in all the games he has played this season. Hence, all we can conclude at this point is that a tight MVP race is on the way this year.
Meanwhile, Mahomes, who is having a statistically impressive season (3,238 passing yards, 22 TDs, and 7 INTs), is hurt by the Chiefs’ 6-6 record, similar to how Joe Burrow suffered last season with the Bengals missing the playoffs. At present, the Chiefs have a 39 percent chance of making the playoffs, and it is not a good sign for their fans.
At this point, Skip, who has been a critic of Mahomes and once called the QB “overrated,” continued to take sly digs at the QB, including the remark, “I hear he’s the GOAT.” He used the Cowboys’ defensive brilliance to add a critical insight into Mahomes’ performance at AT&T Stadium.
“Look what we just did to Patrick Mahomes, the GOAT. I hear he’s the GOAT. We had 23 first downs to the Kansas City Chiefs’ 19…. We had 468 yards to 362. We held Patrick Freaking Mahomes and Andy Freaking Reid to 362 yards. We outrushed Kansas City, who hung their hat on Kareem Hunt,” Skip added with a roar.
Looking back, Dak, Matthew, and Mahomes seem to be on three trajectories after the Thanksgiving games. While Matthew is leading the MVP race and the Rams hope for a second Super Bowl win after 2021, Dak needs to take the Cowboys to the playoffs, where he has a 2-5 record. Notably, Mahomes has never missed a playoff berth since he became the starting QB for the Chiefs.
Thus, the upcoming weeks are going to test the mental strength and endurance of the three QBs. And these two components will play a key role in determining who will have the last laugh next year.
