The Super Bowl MVP is one of the most iconic awards in all of sports. Unlike the other two major American sports, it recognizes the best player from a single championship game rather than an entire series. Over the years, the award has seen unexpected heroes, dominant stars, and even one instance where it was so difficult to decide that it was shared by two players.
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But who decides the winner of the Super Bowl MVP, and what intricacies are involved in making such an important decision? That’s exactly what we looked into recently, and the answers may surprise you.
The Super Bowl MVP is decided by two separate votes. First is a fan vote, which takes place online near the end of the game and accounts for 20% of the total. Meanwhile, a group of 16 specialized NFL journalists makes up the remaining 80% of the vote.
And what’s the prize for winning Super Bowl MVP? Nothing much other than a trophy and fame. Unlike other NFL awards, no money is awarded to the Big Game’s MVP unless that player has a contract incentive.
Most of the time, we see quarterbacks win the award. Tom Brady holds the record with five. Behind him are Patrick Mahomes and Joe Montana with three each. Then there’s Terry Bradshaw, Eli Manning, and Bart Starr, each with two.
With that in mind, both Sam Darnold and Drake Maye are strong candidates to win the Super Bowl MVP award tonight. In fact, Maye nearly took home the regular-season MVP as well, falling just one vote short. Now, he has the chance to redeem himself.
Don’t sleep on a wide receiver possibly winning the Super Bowl MVP, though. Outside of quarterbacks, they have won the award the most. The last to do so is actually on the Seattle Seahawks in Cooper Kupp. But his teammate, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, feels like the most likely candidate if any receiver were to win it this year.
All in all, now you know how the Super Bowl MVP voting works. It’s a combination of fan voting and journalists. Maybe putting the decision in the hands of just 16 writers feels like too few, but the award needs to be decided quickly, leaving no room for delays. In fact, they have to submit their votes with two minutes remaining in the game, and can only change them if a major play occurs.
It’ll be interesting to see who wins the Super Bowl MVP tonight. We’ve only ever seen one player win it from the losing team, back in 1971. So it will almost certainly go to someone on the winning side, and most likely be a QB, a WR, or a defender who makes a major impact. At least, that’s what history has shown.
And if you’re wondering who the two players were that got the nod in the same year, it was defensive tackle Randy White and defensive end Harvey Martin, after they led the Dallas Cowboys defense in 1978 to a 27-10 win over the Broncos.
