Who is the MVP?

 

The race for the 2024 NFL MVP is soon to come to a close as the regular season winds down. Currently there are two frontrunners for the award that are in a neck and neck battle. Those two guys include Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen.

Just two quarterbacks from the 2018 NFL Draft and both from fairly under the radar schools as well. Jackson has already won the MVP award twice, including last year, while Allen has yet to secure the hardware. 

Both have their teams in playoff position, while the Bills have secured the AFC East, but the Ravens are still in the mix for their division. Allen and Jackson have both asserted themselves as two of the most dynamic quarterbacks in the game, whether it is on the ground or through the air. 

Statistically, Jackson has the slight edge in passing and rushing yards while also holding a better touchdown to turnover ratio as well. On the other hand, Allen has the better QBR and team success is heavily in his favor as well. 

Forecasting these numbers, it truly is a neck and neck race between the two superstar quarterbacks. Currently Allen is favored to win his first MVP award, but I believe it will come down to these final three weeks to decide who really will take it home. 

With Jackson being just 27 years old, it would be very impressive if he were to lock down his third MVP at such a young age. Allen, on the other hand, has been patiently waiting his turn for the voters to point the finger at him. In my opinion, this is Josh Allen's award to lose, as I believe he will win his first ever MVP. 

Misery At Its Finest

 

For the 14th straight season, the New York Jets have been eliminated from the NFL playoffs. Once again, the Jets will head into the offseason with some tough questions to answer and some key decisions to make. 

After putting all of their marbles into one basket this season, it seems as if Gang Green will go into a full rebuild in 2025. Vacancies at head coach, general manager, and potentially the quarterback position will need to be filled. 

It will be an interesting decision whether the Jets move on from Aaron Rodgers or not. In his first healthy season with the team, his stats weren't the problem, the end results were. Currently the Jets sit at 4-10 in the bottom of the AFC. 

In a year where the Jets were picked by some to win at least 10 games, to win the AFC East, and to represent even the AFC in the Super Bowl, obviously this is not the case. Sure every part of the team had its troubles this season, but the one area in which the Jets had been so high on the past couple of seasons, the defense let everyone down. 

It started from Week 1 in Santa Clara, the Jets couldn't stop the 49ers whatsoever even when they were without Christian McCaffrey. The defense has had two quality performances this season in my opinion, compared to last season when the defense kept the Jets in almost every single game. 

This year the offense improved not greatly but to some extent. It was always expected that once Aaron Rodgers took over that the offense would take a jump. Add the addition of Davante Adams and the help of Breece Hall and Garrett Wilson, this offense should have no problems competing with the best of the best. Yet, the Jets have 4 wins as we approach Week 16. 

So what is the problem? Plain and simple: everything. From ownership to coaching to the players, the recipe that the Jets have right now is obviously not working. Starting with hiring a new and competent general manager who can go out and find a good head coach is the first step. 

The most vital job for the GM and coach once they are settled is deciding what will happen with Aaron Rodgers. Do they test him out for another season, sign a quarterback in free agency, or go to the draft? The last thing the Jets should be doing is going to the draft for a quarterback. Their history with this is pitiful. 

My advice would be to find some proven NFL talent and take a chance on them. I would strongly approve a reunion with Sam Darnold. Seeing how he has taken his role in complete stride this year has convinced me that he deserves another shot with New York. This time with a more experienced offense around him. 

Then a look at the rest of the roster needs to be made. On paper, the Jets have a really good team but have been just unable to put it all together. This year their main weakness has been closing games. In their last seven games, the Jets have had leads in the 4th quarter, yet they are 2-5 in these games. 

This falls on the coaching. After Robert Saleh was fired, an inexperienced Jeff Ulbrich took over and was left with way too much on his plate. His defensive coaching made the defense what it was the past couple seasons, and now he had to worry about every aspect of the team. 

Whatever new head coach who comes in to Florham Park should strongly consider keeping Ulbrich as the defensive coordinator unless he decides to walk. Ulbrich is a top coordinator in the league and it would be a luxury for any other team if they had him. The new coach can bring in their own offensive coordinator, but keep Ulbrich at the same time. 

It seems like a broken record every offseason, but the Jets are once again living through this pain. A lot needs to be done before the Jets can get back to the postseason. An intriguing offseason is on the cusp for Gang Green in 2025. 

The Aftermath: Juan Soto to the Mets

 

In case you missed it, the New York Mets signed Juan Soto to the largest free agent deal in American professional sports history. He signed a 15 year, $765 million deal with the team in Queens as he leaves the team in the Bronx after just one season.

The Yankees were optimistic that Soto would end up re-signing with them, but in the end they were wrong. Ultimately, Soto was after the money and loyalty didn't really matter when this sum of money was on the table. 

While some say Soto was only after the money, others say he wanted his own team. On the Yankees, he would always be outshined or sharing the spotlight with Aaron Judge, but on the Mets, he is the main attraction. Both sides of the story could be true, but we will never truly know the real answer. 

After Steve Cohen bought the Mets in 2020, fans were waiting for him to make a huge splash and four years later, he finally did. Acquiring Soto doesn't solve the puzzle for the Mets however. They still have a lot of holes in their roster. The pitching rotation and bullpen needs serious improvement even after the addition of Clay Holmes. 

First base is still also a huge question as Pete Alonso has yet to re-sign with the Mets. All in all, Soto will be great for the Mets, but he doesn't guarantee them a ring. They still have to go through the Dodgers at the end of the day. And the NL East isn't a walkover either with the Phillies and Braves still top contenders. 

Now let's look at it from the Yankees perspective. For the Yankees, they now have the ability to be more flexible this offseason without the $750+ million burden on one player. They've already went out and signed three all-stars this offseason: Max Fried, Cody Bellinger, and Devin Williams. 

The three salaries of these superstars doesn't even add up to half of what Soto is making over 15 years in Queens. Fried gives the Yankees the nod as one of the best rotations in the MLB. Williams gives the Bronx Bombers a solid and reliable closer to slam the door when the tough gets going. 

And don't forget about Bellinger who already has an MVP on his resume as well. By signing Soto, the Yankees would probably not have had much flexibility to make these blockbuster moves. Now, they are able to go out and get not only these guys, but more to come. 

Like the Mets, the Yanks still have some holes as well. The Yanks have already announced that Bellinger will be taking over in center field, so first base still remains a question. In fact, both corners of the diamond remain lingering questions. Hot names going across the board are Christian Walker, Pete Alonso, Alex Bregman, and more. 

Adding another one or two of these guys, and the Yanks are in prime position for another World Series push. Sure, there are definitely some cons to losing an MVP type player in Juan Soto, but as a Yankees fan as I look more and more at the pros and the aftermath of the deal, it really wasn't as catastrophic as some are reporting.