5 Dark horse NFL MVP candidates who can shock the world

1. Baker Mayfield, QB, Cleveland Browns

Entering 2020, there were plenty of people jumping off of the Baker Mayfield bandwagon. The No. 1 overall pick in 2018 had looked amazing during his final eight games as a rookie and led the franchise back from an 0-16 campaign to a 7-8-1 mark with a respectable 5-3 finish after Hue Jackson’s long overdue departure.

With Jackson out, Freddie Kitchens took over and since Kitchens was the play-caller during that 5-3 stretch, the expectations were through the roof. The problem was, he wasn’t ready for a head coaching job and that led to him and general manager John Dorsey leaving following a 6-10 season.

It wasn’t just those two who took a hit, however. Mayfield had his name sullied since he threw 21 interceptions in Kitchen’s constant four-vert attack. But the Browns finally got the coaching hire right and Mayfield took some major steps forward in 2020 under Kevin Stefanski. In fact, he was one of the best in the entire NFL after Week 7 when he truly started to grasp the offense.

Mayfield finished with 3,563 with 26 touchdowns and just eight interceptions but more importantly, Cleveland was 11-5. They also knocked Pittsburgh out of the playoffs in the Wild Card Round and nearly upset the Chiefs (although they were without Patrick Mahomes for much of the second half).

With a full season under his belt, Mayfield will be just as comfortable in this offense as he was down the stretch. He also has the added benefit of playing in the same offensive scheme with the same head coach and offensive coordinator for the first time in his four-year career.

Add all that together and he could have a huge season in 2021, which could lead to him earning some shocking hardware.