2024 NFL Season: 3 players who could steal the MVP from Lamar Jackson

Lamar Jackson perhaps controversially won his second NFL MVP award during the 2023 season. Could these three players get in his way of winning it in two-straight seasons? Jackson joins Patrick Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers as the recent NFL MVP winners.

Jackson's most recent MVP award was not the slam-dunk that his first one was in 2019. In fact, some may argue that the dual-threat QB was simply undeserving of the award. Well, there are many other top-tier MVP candidates for the 2024 NFL Season. Could a few of them stand out as being the most likely to rip the award away from Jackson?

2024 NFL Season: 3 players who could steal the MVP from Lamar Jackson
1. CJ Stroud, QB, Houston Texans

My pick for the 2024 NFL MVP Award is CJ Stroud of the Houston Texans, who faced Lamar Jackson during the 2023 NFL playoffs. Stroud is already a star and is the fourth-best QB in the NFL, in my opinion. The Texans didn't exactly have the best personnel situation on offense last year, either.

Well, with the team entering year two of the DeMeco Ryans era and some major additions on offense, it's hard to believe that Stroud doesn't take a huge step forward in year two. Year two for many QBs is a big jump for them, and if Stroud does make that big jump, it's going to lead him to an MVP.

2. Patrick Mahomes, QB, Kansas City Chiefs

This is an obvious one. Patrick Mahomes won the award in 2018 and 2022. Lamar Jackson won the award in 2019 and 2023. If this interesting trend holds, Mahomes won't win the award again until 2026, but do I really need to explain why he is a threat to knock Lamar Jackson off the MVP pedestal in 2024?

Now having won three Super Bowls in five seasons, Mahomes is already a first-ballot Hall of Famer and will surely have his name firmly wrapped up in the MVP discussions in 2024.

3. Aidan Hutchinson, DL, Detroit Lions

This is a fun pick. Aidan Hutchinson became an elite pass rusher in year two for the Detroit Lions, amassing 11.5 sacks, seven! passes defended, 51 total tackles, 14 tackles for loss, and 33 QB hits. With the Lions adding reinforcements to the DL and secondary with guys like Marcus Davenport, DJ Reader, Carlton Davis, Terrion Arnold, and Ennis Rakestraw, Hutchinson's job might have just gotten a ton easier.

He's the best player on the Lions defense, and the unit finally has the necessary talent to be near the top in the NFL. So naturally, the best player on a top unit is going to get most of the attention. It might seem wild to think that a pass-rusher could win the award, but I would not be surprised.