NFL MVP Odds 2025

Of all the yearly honors in professional football, the NFL’s MVP Award is the most prestigious individual accolade a player can earn in the regular season.

A quick glance through the list of past winners should tell you everything you need to know about the magnitude of this honor. From some of the most dominant quarterbacks in league history to the occasional non-QB outlier, the award has been claimed by some of the greatest players in NFL history with several of them achieving the honor more than once.

The NFL MVP race is no longer just a matter of pride for players, agents, and coaches. The NFL MVP futures market has sports bettors follow it closely across the entire 18-week season, placing futures wagers and tracking performances with the hope of cashing in on their predictions.

In this article, we’ll cover everything you need to know about the race to become the 2025-26 NFL MVP, including some of the names to keep an eye on, and how you can get involved with just a few clicks of a button.

How Is the NFL MVP Decided?

The NFL’s Most Valuable Player award is determined through a voting process conducted by a panel of 50 sportswriters and broadcasters from across the United States.

Each voter selects their top candidates, and the player with the most points is named MVP. While there is no hard games-played minimum like the NBA’s 65-game rule (which will prevent Joel Embiid from ever becoming MVP ever again), player availability plays an enormous factor in who eventually becomes MVP, as a quarterback or another key contributor missing three or four games can see their MVP chances evaporate.

The NFL MVP is announced during the NFL Honors show, held the Thursday before the Super Bowl.

Because of the award’s history and the significance from the position itself, quarterbacks absolutely dominate the voting. The last 11 straight winners of the NFL MVP award have been quarterbacks and dating back to 2000, 21 of the last 25 winners of the NFL MVP award have been, you guessed it, a quarterback. 

Essentially, a running back or wide receiver would need a historic season just to be in the conversation.

NFL MVP Odds Report

The race to be NFL MVP figures to be as wide open as any in recent seasons. Here’s a look at how the NFL MVP race shakes down as we inch closer to the new season.

The Favorites

Lamar Jackson (+550) – QB – Baltimore Ravens

It wouldn’t be an NFL MVP award race without the two-time NFL MVP, Lamar Jackson. Lamar is a staple in the NFL MVP race every season and a loaded Ravens roster with Super Bowl aspirations will plant Lamar squarely in the mix for his third career MVP.

The Ravens return most of their offensive unit from a season ago and added a new toy for Lamar to play with in DeAndre Hopkins. While Hopkins isn’t the D-Hop of old, he’s still one of many weapons in this Ravens offense, which of course still includes the incomparable Derrick Henry and talented young wideout Zay Flowers. This all without mentioning the biggest weapon of all: Lamar’s legs.

Best MVP Betting Odds: DraftKings Sportsbook (+550)

Josh Allen (+550) – QB – Buffalo Bills

The 2024-25 NFL MVP is either a co-favorite or not very far behind his Week 1 counterpart in Lamar Jackson, depending on what sportsbook you decide to use to place this bet. 

There are many reasons to like Josh Allen to go back-to-back as league MVP, as the 29-year-old franchise QB is embarking on the start of the prime of his already very successful season.

This is the last season the Bills will play at Rich Stadium (forgive me Highmark, it will always be Rich Stadium to me) and what better way to send out the stadium than with the Bills first Super Bowl title in team history. Josh Allen will need to have another MVP-caliber season to have the Bills in the hunt to do just that.

Best MVP Betting Odds: FanDuel Sportsbook (+550)

The Contenders

Joe Burrow (+650) – QB – Cincinnati Bengals

If the Bengals didn’t start every season with a series of self-inflicted errors, Joe Burrow would have had as good a case as any to bring home the NFL MVP. 

Burrow is fresh off a monster 2024 season that saw him throw for 4918 yards, 43 touchdowns and just nine interceptions after his 2023 season was cut short due to a wrist injury. The Bengals defense figures to be stretched to the limits as Mike Brown paid all his offensive stars the money they were seeking, so Burrow will need to light up the box score and keep the Bengals afloat in a deep AFC North if he is to pull out his first career MVP.

Sports bettors can find Burrow at +650 to win MVP before the season kicks off.

Best MVP Betting Odds: BetMGM (+650)

Patrick Mahomes (+700) – QB – Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs Super Bowl loss in New Orleans was so severe, they’ve somehow become a bit of an afterthought leading up to the new season.

That gives some rare value on a two-time NFL MVP with Patrick Mahomes sitting at +700 to win MVP before the start of the season. With Mahomes coming off of the most average season of his career since becoming a full-time starter, the dip in betting odds makes sense.

However, Mahomes will not be without his share of weapons, as the duo of Xavier Worthy and Rashee Rice are as dangerous on the field as they are off it, and Travis Kelce and Isiah Pacheco return to give Andy Reid more toys to give the league fits.

At some point you have to figure the Chiefs long string of playing deep into January, and sometimes February, will catch up with this veteran group. But if it doesn’t happen this year, State Farm’s favorite son will very much have a say in who walks away with the NFL MVP award.

Best MVP Betting Odds: BetMGM (+700)

Other Names To Consider For NFL MVP

Jayden Daniels (+1000) – QB – Washington Commanders
Jalen Hurts (+2000) – QB – Philadelphia Eagles
C.J. Stroud (+2500) – QB – Houston Texans

Deep Sleepers To Consider Throwing a Pizza Bet On

Matthew Stafford (+4000) – QB – Los Angeles Rams
Saquon Barkley (+6000) – RB – Philadelphia Eagles
Bo Nix (+6000) – QB – Denver Broncos
JJ McCarthy (+8000) – QB – Minnesota Vikings

Recent NFL MVP Winners

Season	Player	Position	Team
2024	Josh Allen	QB	Buffalo Bills
2023	Lamar Jackson	QB	Baltimore Ravens
2022	Patrick Mahomes	QB	Kansas City Chiefs
2021	Aaron Rodgers	QB	Green Bay Packers
2020	Aaron Rodgers	QB	Green Bay Packers
2019	Lamar Jackson	QB	Baltimore Ravens
2018	Patrick Mahomes	QB	Kansas City Chiefs
2017	Tom Brady	QB	New England Patriots
2016	Matt Ryan	QB	Atlanta Falcons
2015	Cam Newton	QB	Carolina Panthers

Recent MVP Trends

It’s a Quarterback’s Award: Every MVP since 2012 has been a quarterback and 21 of the last 25 NFL MVP awards have gone to the top signal caller of the season. Look for the offensive player of the year award futures market if you want to bet on a running back or receiver.

Team Success Matters: 18 of the last 20 MVPs played for teams with at least 12 wins.

Passing Stats Drive Votes: Those sexy box score numbers go a long way with voters. Keep that in mind if you’re debating betting on a guy that may not have the stats to pull in the necessary attention to win this award.

Dual-Threat Advantage: If you can be just as dangerous with your legs as you are your arm, you have a big leg up in this award.

Narrative Counts: Pay close attention to the storylines around the league as the season winds down, often times that will point you in the right direction as to how the race for NFL MVP is shaking out.

How to Bet on the NFL MVP Award

• Follow the season closely! Injuries, big wins, and standout performances can shift odds.
• Log into your sportsbook account, or sign up if you don’t have one.
• Navigate to the NFL betting section, usually under ‘Football’ or ‘NFL Odds.’
• Select ‘Player Futures’ then find the ‘NFL MVP’ market.
• Choose your player and enter your stake, confirm the bet in your slip.