5 Dark horse NFL MVP candidates who can shock the world

By Randy Gurzi | Jun 25, 2021

PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - JANUARY 10: Baker Mayfield #6 of the Cleveland Browns throws a pass during the first half of the AFC Wild Card Playoff game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field on January 10, 2021 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images) /

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ARLINGTON, TEXAS – OCTOBER 11: Dak Prescott #4 of the Dallas Cowboys attempts a pass against the New York Giants during the second quarter at AT&T Stadium on October 11, 2020 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /

2. Dak Prescott, QB, Dallas Cowboys

This one shouldn’t be a shocker, but for some reason, many people would be completely floored if Dak Prescott won the NFL MVP Award. The current starter for the Dallas Cowboys should be a success story. He was a fourth-round pick who took over the most visible franchise in the game and won 13 games as a rookie. He’s 42-27 as a starter and the only losing season on his resume is 2020 when he was 2-3 as a starter before breaking his ankle.

Despite all this, Prescott takes a ton of heat — not unlike his predecessor Tony Romo who was undrafted and turned into a long-term star but is seen somehow as an underachiever. The reason for that is simple — people love to hate the Dallas Cowboys. They always have and always will, which is just something their starting quarterback will always have to fight against.

As for Prescott, he enters 2021 trying to get the taste of a terrible 2020 out of his mouth. The Cowboys were awful on defense and even with Dak throwing for 1,856 yards in five games (that’s 371.2 per game even though he didn’t finish Week 5), they weren’t able to secure any wins. Now, they have a new coordinator on defense which could help keep the fireworks to a minimum but Prescott’s return is even more important.

Should he be able to put up the crazy passing yards he did last season, and have it lead to wins, he should be not only a shoo-in for NFL Comeback Player of the Year, but he could also be in line for NFL MVP. That wouldn’t sit well with a lot of people and with such a reluctance to give Dallas quarterbacks love, it would also constitute a shock to the world.

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