Did Aaron Rodgers Lose Ground to Patrick Mahomes, Derrick Henry for MVP?

Former Cal star Aaron Rodgers is still very much in the MVP discussion with two weeks to go, but the events of Saturday and Sunday may have removed him from the front-runner role.

The Packers quarterback and Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes remain the leading candidates in what many consider a two-man race for the NFL's top individual award, although Titans running back Derrick Henry is pushing his way into contention.

Another former Cal quarterback, Jared Goff, had a performance he would like to forget in the Rams' surprising loss to the previously winless Jets, and ex-Cal star Marvin Jones Jr. of the Lions had a big game Sunday.

But Rodgers' bid for his third MVP remains the top story among former Golden Bears.

In Green Bay's 24-16 win over the Panthers on Saturday, Rodgers led the Packers to touchdowns on their first three possessions, which included Rodgers’ league-leading 40th touchdown pass of the season and a Rodgers touchdown run.

But Rodgers struggled the rest of the way. For the game he was limited to a season-low 143 yards and was sacked a season-high five times. His eight-game streak with 105-plus passer rating and two-plus touchdown passes came to an end with one TD pass and a passer rating of 91.6.

His numbers -- 20-for-29, one passing TD, one rushing TD, no interceptions, a fourth straight victory, and an 11-3 record – look pretty good for most quarterbacks, but not one contending for an MVP award and a Super Bowl win.

“We had a couple good quarters, and a couple stinkers,” Rodgers said.

Here are two postgame interviews with Rodgers:

On Sunday, Patrick Mahomes went 26-for-47 for 254 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions in a 32-29 victory over the Saints. His passer rating of 92.0 was almost identical to Rodgers' passer rating on Saturday, but Mahomes had a handful of "wow" plays against the Saints that made his performance memorable.

So how do you choose?

---Rodgers continues to lead the NFL in passer rating (which is the best indicator of a quarterback's effectiveness) and touchdown passes (40) with a league-low four intercptions among quarterbacks who have played more than 10 games. He has fewer weapons than Mahomes and carries a larger responsibility for his team's success. The 37-year-old Rodgers may be a sentimental favorite since he is 12 years older than Mahomes.

---Mahomes leads the league in passing yardage, is second in touchdown passes and is virtually tied for second in passer rating (with Deshaun Watson). He has a knack for creating successful plays out of nothing, and those "wow" plays appeal to MVP voters. Mahomes' team is 13-1 with a chance to finish 15-1. The last three teams that finished the regular season with zero or one loss -- 2007 Patriots (Tom Brady), 2011 Packers (Rodgers) and 2015 Panthers (Cam Newton) -- also had their quarterback named MVP.

But knocking on the backdoor is Henry, who could steal the MVP if Mahomes and Rodgers falter.

On Sunday, Derrick Henry had 147 rushing yards, while averaging 6.1 yards per carry in the Titans’ 46-25 win over the Lions. He now has 1,679 yards for the season and has two more games to try to reach the 2,000-yard milestone for the 10-4 Titans. The fact that Tennessee quarterback Ryan Tannehill is having a solid season is preventing opposing defenses from loading the box to stop Henry, who needs to average 160.5 yards over the next two games to reach 2,000..

Four of the seven players who rushed for more than 2,000 yards in a season won the MVP, but the single-season record-holder (Eric Dickerson with 2,185 yards in 1984) did not win the MVP, losing out to quarterback Dan Marino.

A quarterback has won the last seven MVP awards, and 12 of the past 13. The lone exception in that span was 2012 when running back Adrian Peterson won it after rushing for 2,097 yards.

Henry's Titans (10-4) face Rodgers' Packers (11-3) next Sunday night.

We trudge ahead, and look at other ex-Cal players who had notable performances this weekend:

---Rams quarterback Jared Goff was not awful by any means, but he needed to be better than he was as Los Angeles suffered a 23-20 loss to a Jets team that was winless.

Goff was 22-of-39 for 209 yards, two touchdowns, one interception and an 89.0 passer rating, but his incomplete passes on third-and-4 and fourth-and-4 from the Jets' 37-yard line with four minutes left prevented the Rams from coming away with a victory.

Here is Goff's postgame interview:

Just a few days ago we pondered whether the Rams could win a Super Bowl with Goff as their quarterback, and this game provides more food for thought.

---Lions receiver Marvin Jones Jr. had a big day with a game-high 10 catches for a game-high 112 yards and a touchdown in a 46-25 loss to the Titans. He now has 65 catches for 779 yards and seven touchdowns. He has 40 of his catches in the past six games, and 276 of his receiving yards came in the past three games.

Jones’ TD catch:

Stafford to @MarvinJonesJr for the score❗️#DETvsTEN | 📺 CBS | #OnePride pic.twitter.com/CXSx0vvWRQ
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) December 20, 2020

.---Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan had three stackles, incuding one tackles for a loss, and had one quarterback hit in the loss to Kansas City. But Jordan was ejected from the game early in the fourth quarter for a blow to the face of a Chiefs lineman.

---Texans receiver Chad Hansen, who was activated from the practice squad just three weeks ago, had two receptions for 55 yards, including a 38-yard touchdown catch. In his three NFL games this season, Hansen has 14 receptions for 202 yards and a touchdown.

Hansen touchdown catch (yeah, he was slightly open):

Saying he was wide open is an understatement...

🙌 TOUCHDOWN CHAD HANSEN! 🙌

📺: CBS
📱: https://t.co/Nm64mQkAPf pic.twitter.com/b7e573BxHV
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) December 20, 2020

---Dolphins running back Patrick Laird, who has become a bigger factor for Miami in the second half of the season, had two carries for 20 yards and two receptions for 12 yards in a 22-12 victory over the Patriots. He has rushed for 72 yards this season while averaging 5.5 yards on his 13 carries.

---Texans punter Bryan Anger averaged 47.5 yards on two punts, both of which were inside the 20-yard line.

---Falcons rookie safety Jaylinn Hawkins did not record any statistics in Atlanta’s 31-27 loss to the Buccaneers. Atlanta starting free safety Ricardo Allen was out with an injury, but Sharrod Neasman got the start at that position instead of Hawkins.

---Cowboys long-snapper L.P. Ladouceur played in his 251st consecutive regular-season game in a 34-24 win over the 49ers. That is the longest active streak in the NFL and the sixth-longest run of games played in NFL history. Including playoffs, Ladouceur has played in 260 straight games.

---Jets rookie safety Ashtyn Davis is out for the rest of the season with a foot injury. He played in 10 games this season, including six starts.

---Ravens center Patrick Mekari was a starter on a Baltimore team that rushed for 159 yards in a 40-14 victory over Jacksonville.

---Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen got his 100th reception of the season in Thursday’s 30-27 victory over the Raiders. But that one catch for 17 yards was his only reception before he was more or less relieved of further duty due to his hamstring injury. His pregame message into the camera of “don’t sit me” to Fantasy players did not sit well with Fantasy players who chose to start Allen. He needs 8 receiving yards to reach 1,000 for the season.

Cover photo of Aaron Rodgers by Benny Sieu, USA TODAY Sports

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