With four weeks remaining in the NFL regular season, it’s clear to most people throughout the league that Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts and Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes are the two leaders in the league’s MVP race. But one stat seems to indicate that Hurts should be the favorite to win the award over Mahomes.
As football news editor Brenden Deeg of The Score points out, Jalen Hurts has been drastically better at protecting the ball this season than Patrick Mahomes.
Patrick Mahomes has the same amount of interceptions today that Jalen Hurts has all season.
Hurts is the MVP of the league so far, ladies and gentlemen.
— Brenden Deeg (@BrendenDeeg_) December 12, 2022
“Patrick Mahomes has the same amount of interceptions today that Jalen Hurts has all season. Hurts is the MVP of the league so far, ladies and gentlemen,” Deeg said on Twitter.
He’s not wrong. During Sunday’s game against the Denver Broncos, Mahomes threw three interceptions in the 34-28 win. Meanwhile, Hurts has thrown only three interceptions in the entire NFL season. Mahomes, by comparison, has thrown 11 interceptions this season.
While this is certainly an eye-popping stat, it is worth noting that Mahomes has thrown 123 more passes than Hurts, and throws downfield more often than Hurts does. Mahomes also has the higher QBR of the two, posting a 77.9 QBR compared to Hurts’ 70.4.
Still, Hurts’ ability to protect the ball should be commended.
