2017 NFL Awards: Our Writers See Tom Brady as MVP

MVP: Tom Brady (12)

Runner-ups: Carson Wentz (3), Todd Gurley (2), Russell Wilson (2), Alvin Kamara (1)

In a relatively weak field this season, it always looked like this was Tom Brady’s award to lose.

Brady's clip of 0.28 Passing NEP per drop back ranked first among all quarterbacks with at least 100 drop backs this season. He also led in Total NEP, though he did finish third among quarterbacks in Total NEP per play, which accounts for drop backs and rushing attempts

If Wentz had stayed healthy, this could've been very interesting, but

Still, Brady’s degree of difficulty was much higher, especially in the beginning of the season, when the New England Patriots' defense was one of the worst in the league. (It only improved to 29th in Adjusted Defensive NEP per play to end the year.)

Arguably, no quarterback was asked to do more in 2017. At the age of 40, Brady led the league in passing attempts with 581 and passing yards. He was third in touchdown passes, fourth in yards per attempt, and fifth in adjusted net yards per attempt.

In a year when there wasn’t a standout quarterback who led in all of those categories -- like Matt Ryan did last season -- Brady’s efforts are more than enough to get him the award this year.