Von Miller

Why Raiders QB Derek Carr should be considered the frontrunner for NFL MVP

Published Nov. 15, 2016 1:48 p.m. ET

Dieter Kurtenbach

Football is a game in which quality isn’t always rewarded — there are too many moving parts, too many nuances, for there to be true karmic balance on the field.

Are the Oakland Raiders a good team? There are a lot of things that make you think that, yes, they are. Then again, there’s plenty to refute that stance as well. They do have a point differential of plus-12 through eight games, after all.

It’s hard to get a read on the Raiders — the team might be the most enigmatic in the NFL this year.

But, as Bill Parcells famously said: you are what your record says you are.

The Raiders have the second-best record in the AFC at 6-2. Their record says they are a good team, and if you’re looking for the reason that’s the case, you just have to look under center.

Derek Carr is putting together an MVP-worthy season in Oakland — halfway through the NFL season, he should be considered the leader for the award.

Stymied by a defense that can’t seem to get off the field and surrounded by an offense that can’t seem to stop committing penalties, Carr has lifted the Raiders to six wins by making plays in all areas of the game: short passes, deep throws, with his feet — he's done it all this season.

And the Raiders’ wild overtime win over Tampa Bay Sunday was the best performance of his career: Carr had 526 total yards and four touchdown passes.

It was an incredible showing in a contest where seemingly no one but Carr brought his A-game.

Carr has the Raiders a few wins away from the franchise’s first postseason berth since 2002. With those stats, that drought, and, frankly, the team that’s around him (save for the offensive line, which has been astounding at times this season), Carr is doing more with less than anyone else in football.

If you're looking for an MVP, that's a good standard by which to judge.

There are others in the running for the award, sure, but are they as valuable as Carr this season?

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan deserves MVP consideration, but is he the most valuable player on his own team? You could argue Julio Jones is the MVP of the Falcons.

Tom Brady deserves MVP love as well, but it’s not like the team was suffering when he was out for those four games at the beginning of the season. He’s tremendous, but that’s a high bar for value.

Von Miller, Ezekiel Elliott, Dak Prescott? They’re all excellent, but they're not doing it alone, something Carr has seemingly done at times this season, so the answers are no, no and no.

Carr needs to keep up his current pace — though 500 yards every week is out of the question — not only for his MVP candidacy but also because that’s what the Raiders need to win every week.

His play and the team’s fate are directly tied, moreso than perhaps any team in the league. The Raiders can’t win unless Carr has a strong game — he has to overcome not only the opponent but his own team and coaching staff, it seems.

So far this season, he’s doing just that: overcoming.

You are what your record says you are, and if that’s the case, then Carr deserves to be considered the league’s MVP right now.