NFL midseason-ish awards: Darnold’s rise to MVP and a surprising Browns rookie

With the season more than halfway done, we look at the outstanding figures from the 2025 campaign so far

Sam Darnold, QB, Seahawks. With apologies to Jonathan Taylor, we know how this story goes. MVP doesn't stand for Most Valuable Player anymore. It stands for Most Valuable Quarterback on a 12-win team with a nice storyline. That gives us three frontrunners: Matthew Stafford, Drake Maye and Darnold.