Mahomes Is MVP Favorite Status With Game-Winning Drive Against Raiders

The Kansas City Chiefs flirted with disaster against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday. Thank goodness there was Patrick Mahomes.

The Chiefs entered the game with a two-game lead over the Raiders in the AFC West and it wasn’t that Las Vegas was threatening them yet. But after losing their first head to head meeting 40-32, there was no way Mahomes would’ve let Derek Carr sweep their season matchup.

In his NFL career, Mahomes last lost twice in the same season to only one quarterback. That happened during his rookie season when the Chiefs lost twice to Tom Brady’s New England Patriots – once during the regular season and the second time at the 2018 AFC championship game. The Raiders meanwhile, have not swept the Chiefs since 2012 but late in Sunday’s game, it appeared that the stars would align against Kansas City. But then again, there was Patrick Mahomes.

Too Much Time for Mahomes

Derek Carr’s one-yard pass to tight end Jason Witten gave the Raiders a 31-28 lead with less than two minutes left in the game. But if you thought that Carr had led the game-winning drive to sweep the Kansas City Chiefs, you were so badly mistaken. The Raiders left too much time for Mahomes to work with. One minute and 43 seconds is an eternity of football for the most dangerous QB in the business.

Patrick Mahomes tonight:

34/45


348 YDS


2 TD

He went 75 yards in 75 seconds for the game-winning TD drive. pic.twitter.com/nAYV96AGXB

— StatMuse (@statmuse) November 23, 2020

With the precision of a surgeon, Mahomes led a seven-play,75-yard touchdown drive that ended in the game-winning touchdown. The 2018 NFL MVP completed six of seven passes in that drive, including the 22-yard end zone pass to a wide-open Travis Kelce with 28 seconds left in the game. Mahomes needed only two third downs and one second down to produce the score.

The touchdown was the first go-ahead TD in the final two minutes of regulation in Patrick Mahomes’ career and for sure, it won’t be the last. Mahomes leads the league with 3,035 passing yards and only two interceptions this season. He is also 3rd overall with 27 touchdowns this year and with this pace, he has indeed taken the driver’s seat in the MVP race.

Favorite to Win MVP

Since week 2 of the 2020 NFL season, the Seattle Seahawks’ Russell Wilson has been the betting favorite to win MVP honors. Wilson was a -190 a couple of weeks ago and was a +125 to Mahomes’ +220 last week. But after throwing a total of seven picks in their three losses in their last five games, Wilson has fallen from grace.

#NFL MVP odds heading into Week 11. Patrick Mahomes has overtaken Russell Wilson as the favorite, and Kyler Murray is now firmly in the mix.https://t.co/3hjQMetbHx

— TheLines (@TheLinesUS) November 18, 2020

Mahomes meanwhile, has led the Chiefs to a 5-0 record during the same period. He completed 14 touchdown passes and only had one interception during that span. Because of that, the Chiefs’ signal-caller has emerged as the new odds on favorite to win the 2020 NFL MVP award. As per the latest odds, Mahomes is a -190 betting favorite with Wilson a distant second at +400.

Sunday’s gut-wrenching performance against the Raiders will only solidify Mahomes’ position when the odds for this week are released. There’s no denying that Mahomes has taken the driver’s seat in the MVP race. And there’s no stopping the Chiefs from winning their fifth consecutive division title.

All but Sealed AFC West

The defending Super Bowl champions opened as +350 odds on favorite to win a fifth consecutive AFC West division crown. After opening the season with a 4-0 record, the sportsbooks already crowned them as division winners at -4500 odds. Following their Week 11 win over the Raiders, Kansas City has all but sealed the division win and their odds have skyrocketed to +10000.

Kansas City opens a three-game lead in the AFC West with a thrilling comeback at Las Vegas — no team bus victory lap needed: https://t.co/obVHxnteaG

— 41 Action News (@41actionnews) November 23, 2020

Kansas City has also solidified its status as Super Bowl 55 betting favorites. The Chiefs opened the season tied with the Baltimore Ravens for the shortest odds to win the NFL’s ultimate prize at +650. But as of the current betting odds at SportsBetting.ag, Kansas City is now a clear +325 odds on favorite to repeat as Super Bowl winners. Meanwhile, the undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers have moved to second at +500.

The 9-1 Chiefs will head to the Raymond James Stadium next weekend to take on Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who are looking to keep up with the New Orleans Saints in the race for the NFC South. Kansas City has opened as -3 point betting favorites in that road assignment.