Carson Wentz, Alex Smith among MVP candidates at midseason, per Peter King
By Matt Conner
The Kansas City Chiefs have a legitimate MVP candidate, per Peter King, in their starting quarterback Alex Smith through the season’s first half.
Of all of the players on the Kansas City Chiefs who would have been considered an MVP candidate heading into the regular season, starting quarterback Alex Smith likely wouldn’t have been the first choice. Justin Houston and Eric Berry would have certainly been considered on the defensive side, while maybe the NFL’s fastest player, Tyreek Hill, would have been considered on the offensive end. Certainly after Week 1, Kareem Hunt would have garnered some votes. But through 9 games, Peter King of Monday Morning Quarterback believes Smith is a top 3 choice for MVP.
King has quarterbacks at the top of his MVP list, as is the norm for the award. Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz and New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady occupy the two spots above Smith. King writes:
"Amazing to see this man with the dinking-and-dunking reputation entering Week 9 leading the NFL with an 8.4-yards-per-attempt average. Smith has become a good downfield thrower with a healthy Tyreek Hill to target. Smith is a legit MVP candidate … if the Chiefs can stay atop their division. He went until the fourth quarter of Week 9 before he threw his first interception of the season."
Through the first eight games of the season, Smith had yet to turn the ball over, an incredible run that featured games against some of the best defenses in the NFL. He already has 3 300-yard games on the year (and another of 293 passing yards), and he’s the NFL’s top ranked passer when throwing the deep ball.
Related Story: Why Chiefs fans shouldn't lose hope
After an offseason in which many Chiefs fans were clamoring for Patrick Mahomes to start as a rookie because Alex Smith was an ill fit for such a rare weapon like Tyreek Hill, the Chiefs veteran has proven everyone wrong with a season like none other. Now he has a fairly easy stretch run of a schedule to continue to show what he can do to make the decisions ahead difficult for the Chiefs.