Last August I mentioned in the past that Tyreek Hill was a high tide who could lift the Tua Tagovailoas boat. I didn’t expect Miami’s underground attack to turn into a seaplane.
Hill should have watched the Kansas City Chiefs win the Super Bowl without him and it should have been a humbling experience. Patrick Mahomes not only led the entire league in passing, but he became the first ever quarterback to win the Super Bowl in the same year. In a 17-game season, I’m not sure where the center is, but with Week 9’s Thursday Night Football game in the books, it feels too late to declare Hill the Midseason MVP. It feels like heresy to call a receiver the most important player in an offense, but Hill has been such a juggernaut in 2023 that it feels lazy to properly go back to the quarterback.
The defense may be able to stifle Tagovailoa or force him to make a mistake, but they can’t suffocate Hill for 60 minutes. And amid a rough first half of the NFL season in which no quarterback has hit the ground running, it’s time to look elsewhere for the answer to MVP questions.
Instead, ESPN asked 12 analysts to rank and explain their MVP leaders, but somehow Hill can’t make up any ground in the race. The five names that ESPN came up with? Tagovailoa, Mahomes, Christian McCaffrey, Josh Allen and Jalen Hurts as honorable mention. They threw a bone to non-quarterbacks with McCaffrey, but somehow Hill couldn’t make the cut despite leading his entire position group in yards, yards after catch, receptions on first downs and touchdowns. What else should he do? He is three catches behind Stefon Diggs in making this an out.
There are no tricks to what Hill does. I understand that quarterbacks are graded on a curve, but as great as Tagovailoa is, Hill has helped him pull off the biggest turnaround since Lance Alworth saved Dan Fouts’ floundering career. Mahomes and Hurts were too good to deny last season, but both are coming off tighter wins these days. In the context of the MVP race, it’s okay to move on.
During a rough first half of the season in which no quarterback has hit the ground running, it’s time to look to other positions for the answer to this year’s MVP question. Instead of, Twelve ESPN analysts asked to rank and explain their MVP leaders came up with the following: Tagovailoa, Mahomes, Christian McCaffrey, Josh Allen and Jalen Hurts as honorable mention. They threw a bone to non-QBs with McCaffrey, but couldn’t be bothered to include a receiver who leads his position group in yards, yards after catch, receptions on first downs and touchdowns.
NFL.com, meanwhile, had Mahomes, Tagovailoa and then Lamar Jackson as 1-2-3 slots in the early MVP race, followed by Myles Garrett and Jared Goff. The disrespect for recipients is blatant.
Quarterbacks have always had a monopoly on the MVP, and no wide receiver has ever won this award since its inception. This year, exceptions must be made. When Cooper Kupp won the triple crown and led the league receptions, catches and touchdowns, he only came third. However, this field of quarterbacks is weaker than Kupp’s 2021 MVP opposition. The 2021 winner was peak Aaron Rodgers, who registered a 70.9 QBR on 37 touchdowns against four interceptions. Tagovailoa’s numbers this year are commendable, but not as flawless as Rodgers’ 2021 campaign.
Bless Tagovailoa’s heart, but his season just doesn’t compare. And even worse, his favorite target is responsible for almost half of his production. As great as Mahomes is, he’s having a bad year. NFL voters don’t have to give him MVP votes out of some strange sense of duty. A truly historic season is underway and NFL pundits have brainwashed themselves into backing the quarterback.
Teams around the league have started making plans to take away the deep pass because of Hill and he still ranks second in 20-yard gains on catches and first in 40-yard gains. This week is a huge opportunity for him to leave a lasting mark on the season and join the race in Germany on Sunday morning by taking his former team to the woodshed.
Follow DJ Dunson on X: @brain sportsex