2020 NFL MVP Candidates: Can Lamar Jackson Repeat?

Tier Three:

8. Michael Thomas, New Orleans Saints – Tier three

After putting up over 1,700 yards in 2019, Michael Thomas is arguably the best wide receiver in the entire NFL (Julio Jones, DeAndre Hopkins), so why is he in the third tier? The addition of wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders and the expected regression of Drew Brees.

What does this mean? Emmanuel Sanders, who almost made the game-winning catch for the 49ers in the Super Bowl last season, will surely take away from Thomas’s 149 receptions last season. Combine this with Drew Brees, who is no Tom Brady and is expected to regress at age 41, and we’ll see a big drop off in production.

All of these reasons, combined with the fact that no receiver in NFL history has won the MVP honors (not even Jerry Rice, the greatest receiver of all time), an MVP for Thomas is surely possible, but highly unlikely.

9. Christian McCaffrey, Carolina Panthers – Tier three

What! Why is he in Tier three? He should be in Tier one! Hear me out, guys. Although he is coming off a season with 1,000 yards receiving and rushing, the Panthers have failed to improve their offensive line in the offseason – they actually made it worse.

Unlike the Giants, who selected Georgia offensive linemen Andrew Thomas with the 4th pick, the Panthers shipped Trai Turner, a multi-time Pro Bowler, to Seattle for Russell Okung, who is both worse and older than Turner.

All of these reasons, combined with a new head coach and being in a rebuilding team, will result, just like Michael Thomas, in his numbers dropping off. Although he has the talent to become the first running back since Adrian Peterson in 2012 to win the MVP honors, the odds are stacked heavily against him.

10. Drew Lock, Denver Broncos – Dark Horse

Following an underrated rookie campaign, in which he had almost a 90 passer rating, Lock should highly benefit from the addition of Alabama wide receiver Jerry Jeudy, commonly said to be the best receiver in the class (although not drafted as such), and Melvin Gordon, a great running back whom the Broncos signed in the offseason from the Chargers.

Put simply, the Broncos offense is stacked. Besides the offseason additions listed above, the Broncos had wide receiver Courtland Sutton and Phillip Lindsay, both of whom had over 1,000 yards (passing/rushing).

Lock has the potential to lead the Broncos in rivaling Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC West for years to come. If Lock can make the jump this year and dethrone the reigning Super Bowl Champs, then an MVP award is not out of sight. He is the dark horse MVP candidate.