Every NFL MVP Winner in History
The National Football League was founded in 1920, while the Super Bowl era kicked off almost half a century later in 1967. In the years that have followed, we have seen the New England Patriots and the Pittsburgh Steelers lift a record six trophies each, Peyton Manning scoop five NFL MVP awards, and Tom Brady win seven Super Bowls. Let’s take a closer look at the top 10 teams of all time!
There are 32 teams in the NFL. Each team has 53 players on its active roster, plus a practice squad. That makes for more than 2,200 players fighting it out in the National Football League every single season. To be voted the Most Valuable Player within such an immense pool of talented players is seen as one of the biggest honours in the sport. It is akin to a soccer player winning a Ballon d’Or award or an actor receiving an Oscar. Only the very best of the very best will ever taste the sweet victory of an MVP title. Let’s take a look through the history of every single NFL MVP winner from 1957 to present day – including some generational players who have won it more than once.
What is the NFL MVP award?
The general concept of an MVP award in American sports is simple – it is handed to the player deemed to have been the ‘most valuable’ in that year’s regular season. Over the years, there have been a number of different presenters of MVP awards in the NFL. However, the AP NFL Most Valuable Player award is now seen as the most official and prestigious available, to the point that even the NFL Honors ceremony celebrates the winner each year.
The other MVP awards included Sporting News, the Jim Thorpe Trophy, the Joe F. Carr Trophy, UPI, and PFWA. Only the Pro Football Writers of America MVP award still runs alongside the AP award to this day. AP also hand out awards for the NFL Offensive Player of the Year and the NFL Defensive Player of the Year.
Who Votes for NFL MVP Winners?
The NFL MVP award is decided by a panel of 50 sportswriters who all vote for their preferred Most Valuable Player that season. The vote takes place at the end of the regular season, so playoff performances do not count towards the award. The MVP is then announced the day before the Super Bowl.
The 50 sportswriters who vote for the MVP are selected for their expertise within the sport and the group is pretty consistent every year. AP refers to this group of experts as the ‘nationwide panel of media’.
The MVP process underwent a major change in 2022. Before that, each voter would simply select their top choice to win the award and whoever received the highest number of votes would claim the prize. However, this left more room for potential ties, as we saw in both 1997 and 2003. Therefore, a new points-based system was introduced by AP. Now, each voter is asked to rank their top five candidates from 1-5. First receives ten points, second gets 5, third gets 3, fourth gets 2, and fifth gets 1 point. This provides a much larger spread of results and reduces the risk of a tie. It also creates a larger pool of runners-ups which is always interesting for fans to look at.
How to Vote for NFL MVP Winners?
Unfortunately, the general public has no say over who wins the NFL MVP award because it is decided by a closed panel of 50 experts. AP prefers to use experts with a wide knowledge of the game over fans who may carry biases into the voting process. After all, if you opened the MVP up to the public, it would become nothing more than a popularity contest to see which team/player has the most fans.
Supporters do, however, have a say on which player wins the Super Bowl MVP award. Fans make up 20% of the Super Bowl MVP award votes, which are carried out on NFL.com. The remaining 80% comes from a media panel of 16 experts.
The NFL MVP Winners List by Year
Let’s take a look through every single NFL MVP winner from Jim Brown in 1957 all the way up to Josh Allen in 2024.
| Year | MVP | Position | Team |
| 2024 | Josh Allen | Quarterback | Buffalo Bills |
| 2023 | Lamar Jackson | Quarterback | Baltimore Ravens |
| 2022 | Patrick Mahomes | Quarterback | Kansas City Chiefs |
| 2021 | Aaron Rodgers | Quarterback | Green Bay Packers |
| 2020 | Aaron Rodgers | Quarterback | Green Bay Packers |
| 2019 | Lamar Jackson | Quarterback | Baltimore Ravens |
| 2018 | Patrick Mahomes | Quarterback | Kansas City Chiefs |
| 2017 | Tom Brady | Quarterback | New England Patriots |
| 2016 | Matt Ryan | Quarterback | Atlanta Falcons |
| 2015 | Cam Newton | Quarterback | Carolina Panthers |
| 2014 | Aaron Rodgers | Quarterback | Green Bay Packers |
| 2013 | Peyton Manning | Quarterback | Denver Broncos |
| 2012 | Adrian Peterson | Running Back | Minnesota Vikings |
| 2011 | Aaron Rodgers | Quarterback | Green Bay Packers |
| 2010 | Tom Brady | Quarterback | New England Patriots |
| 2009 | Peyton Manning | Quarterback | Indianapolis Colts |
| 2008 | Peyton Manning | Quarterback | Indianapolis Colts |
| 2007 | Tom Brady | Quarterback | New England Patriots |
| 2006 | Ladainian Tomlinson | Running Back | San Diego Chargers |
| 2005 | Shaun Alexander | Running Back | Seattle Seahawks |
| 2004 | Peyton Manning | Quarterback | Indianapolis Colts |
| 2003 Co-MVP | Steve Mcnair | Quarterback | Tennessee Titans |
| 2003 Co-MVP | Peyton Manning | Quarterback | Indianapolis Colts |
| 2002 | Rich Gannon | Quarterback | Oakland Raiders |
| 2001 | Kurt Warner | Quarterback | St. Louis Rams |
| 2000 | Marshall Faulk | Running Back | St. Louis Rams |
| 1999 | Kurt Warner | Quarterback | St. Louis Rams |
| 1998 | Terrell Davis | Running Back | Denver Broncos |
| 1997 Co-MVP | Barry Sanders | Running Back | Detroit Lions |
| 1997 Co-MVP | Brett Favre | Quarterback | Green Bay Packers |
| 1996 | Brett Favre | Quarterback | Green Bay Packers |
| 1995 | Brett Favre | Quarterback | Green Bay Packers |
| 1994 | Steve Young | Quarterback | San Francisco 49ers |
| 1993 | Emmitt Smith | Running Back | Dallas Cowboys |
| 1992 | Steve Young | Quarterback | San Francisco 49ers |
| 1991 | Thurman Thomas | Running Back | Buffalo Bills |
| 1990 | Joe Montana | Quarterback | San Francisco 49ers |
| 1989 | Joe Montana | Quarterback | San Francisco 49ers |
| 1988 | Boomer Esiason | Quarterback | Cincinnati Bengals |
| 1987 | John Elway | Quarterback | Denver Broncos |
| 1986 | Lawrence Taylor | Linebacker | New York Giants |
| 1985 | Marcus Allen | Running Back | Los Angeles Raiders |
| 1984 | Dan Marino | Quarterback | Miami Dolphins |
| 1983 | Joe Theismann | Quarterback | Washington |
| 1982 | Mark Moseley | Placekicker | Washington |
| 1981 | Ken Anderson | Quarterback | Cincinnati Bengals |
| 1980 | Brian Sipe | Quarterback | Cleveland Browns |
| 1979 | Earl Campbell | Running Back | Houston Oilers |
| 1978 | Terry Bradshaw | Quarterback | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| 1977 | Walter Payton | Running Back | Chicago Bears |
| 1976 | Bert Jones | Quarterback | Baltimore Colts |
| 1975 | Fran Tarkenton | Quarterback | Minnesota Vikings |
| 1974 | Ken Stabler | Quarterback | Oakland Raiders |
| 1973 | O.J. Simpson | Running Back | Buffalo Bills |
| 1972 | Larry Brown | Running Back | Washington |
| 1971 | Alan Page | Defensive Tackle | Minnesota Vikings |
| 1970 | John Brodie | Quarterback | San Francisco 49ers |
| 1969 | Roman Gabriel | Quarterback | Los Angeles Rams |
| 1968 | Earl Morrall | Quarterback | Baltimore Colts |
| 1967 | Johnny Unitas | Quarterback | Baltimore Colts |
| 1966 | Bart Starr | Quarterback | Green Bay Packers |
| 1965 | Jim Brown | Fullback | Cleveland Browns |
| 1964 | Johnny Unitas | Quarterback | Baltimore Colts |
| 1963 | Y.A. Tittle | Quarterback | New York Giants |
| 1962 | Jim Taylor | Fullback | Green Bay Packers |
| 1961 | Paul Hornung | Halfback | Green Bay Packers |
| 1959 | Johnny Unitas | Quarterback | Baltimore Colts |
| 1958 | Jim Brown | Fullback | Cleveland Browns |
| 1957 | Jim Brown | Fullback | Cleveland Browns |
Who has won the most NFL MVP titles?
Most people would assume that Tom Brady has the most NFL MVP awards, seeing as he played 23 seasons and won the Championship seven times. However, Brady only just makes it into the joint top-three list of MVP titles. Jim Brown, Johnny Unitas, Brett Favre, and Tom Brady were all named Most Valuable Player three times in their careers. Aaron Rodgers picked up the award four times in 2011, 2014, 2020, and 2021 for the Green Bay Packers.
However, the man in the top spot is none other than football legend, Peyton Manning. Manning was named MVP in 2003, 2004, 2008, and 2009 with the Indianapolis Colts. In 2013, he won the award for a record fifth time with the Denver Broncos, also becoming the first player to ever win MVP awards with two different teams.
What is the biggest NFL MVP win in history?
Winning an MVP award in itself is a major individual honour in football, but there is one thing even more impressive that only two players have ever achieved – the clean sweep. When it comes to the voting process, the player who receives the highest percentage of votes wins the award. In 1971, the votes were spread across so many players that Alan Page managed to take home the prize with just 21% of the vote.
In 2010, Tom Brady made history with his second MVP victory. Not only was his groundbreaking season with the New England Patriots worth a Most Valuable Player award, but he also got 100% of the votes. Out of 50 experts on the AP panel, all 50 wrote his name down as their top choice. In 2019, the feat was repeated by Lamar Jackson who received 50/50 votes for his season with the Baltimore Ravens.
Brady and Jackson are the only two players in history to claim that honour, although Peyton Manning went close in 2013 with 49/50 votes. Lamar Jackson almost scooped his second 100% MVP award in 2023 but ended up one vote short.
Which team has the most NFL MVP awards? The answer is controversial!
The answer to this question really depends on who you ask. The Green Bay Packers will likely claim the top spot to themselves, while the Indianapolis Colts may argue they have every right to share the lead. Let’s dig into the controversy a little more. AP has presented an award for the best player in an NFL season since 1957. However, even AP themselves think the true birth of the Most Valuable Player award came in 1961. This leaves us with a conundrum where some football fans count 1957, 1958, 1959, and 1960, while others do not.
If you count the first four years, then the Colts have 10 MVP awards in total – five for Peyton Manning, three for Johnny Unitas, and one each for Earl Morrall and Bert Jones. If you don’t count the first four years, then Unitas only has two and the Colts just nine. Whatever way you look at it, the Packers have 10 in total – four for Aaron Rodgers, three for Brett Favre, and one each for Bart Starr, Jim Taylor, and Paul Hornung.
Which famous players have never won an NFL MVP award?
There have been a number of big names to miss out on the MVP award over the years.
- Despite catching 136 passes for 1,871 yards and eight touchdowns in 2016, Julio Jones was only good enough to help his quarterback Matt Ryan to MVP success.
- Only Jerry Rice (13) has more Pro Bowl selections than Larry Fitzgerald’s 11, but he never added his name to the MVP list.
- Troy Aikman was snubbed in 1992 even after he recorded 23 touchdowns and passed for just under 3,500 yards.
- Ben Roethlisberger burst onto the scene as AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2004 and went on to win two Super Bowls with Pittsburgh, but never an NFL MVP.
- Even one of the greatest wide receivers in history, Randy Moss, never picked up the award.
- Jim Kelly was the NFL leader with 33 touchdowns in 1991 but ended the season emptyhanded.
- Warren Moon was beaten by Joe Montana in 1990 despite leading the NFL for touchdowns, yards, and passing completions.
- Randall Cunningham came second in the MVP vote on three separate occasions, without ever quite clinching that win.
- It could be worse, imagine leading the NFL in passing yards in seven different seasons but still not winning. In 2011, Drew Brees even managed 46 touchdowns and 5,476 yards only to be beaten by Aaron Rodgers.
- 13 Pro Bowl selections, the all-time leading receiver in NFL touchdowns, and 22,895 career receiving yards. Jerry Rice is widely considered to be the best player never to win the MVP award. He did help five of his teammates win awards of their own though.
Which teams have never won an NFL MVP award?
There are only six NLF teams never to see one of their players named MVP: the New York Jets, Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars, Arizona Cardinals, New Orleans Saints, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Last updated: 26.03.25
