Tom Brady Picks Josh Allen as MVP Frontrunner Over Mahomes

Tom Brady has weighed in on the 2026 NFL MVP race, and he put Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen at the top of his list.

Speaking on FOX Sports’ “Ask Tom,” the seven-time Super Bowl champion and three-time MVP winner shared his top four candidates for the award through the first half of the season.

Allen leads Brady’s list, with the GOAT calling his play “great football.”

“That quarterback position we know impacts — Josh is throwing it in, running it in,” Brady said.

“He’s doing a great job.”

Allen’s numbers back up the praise.

Through seven games, the Bills star has thrown for 1,793 yards with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions, posting a 101.1 passer rating.

On the ground, he has rushed for 270 yards and nine touchdowns, bringing his total to 20 touchdowns on the season.

That total is tied for the second-most in the league.

The Bills sit at 6-1, the best record in the AFC, and are widely seen as one of the favorites to reach the Super Bowl.

Allen is currently the clear MVP favorite on FanDuel with odds at +165.

Brady’s second pick was San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy.

“The 6-1 49ers — I don’t think they would be in that position without Brock’s steady, dependable, consistent play,” Brady said.

“He’s done so many great things.”

Purdy has thrown for 1,748 yards with 15 touchdowns and four interceptions, leading the league with a 110.1 passer rating.

He holds the third-best MVP odds at +500.

The third name on Brady’s list was Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff.

“I’ve covered him now in back-to-back weeks,” Brady said.

“Total command of the offense. Doing such a great job distributing the ball, deep to Jameson Williams, to Amon-Ra [St. Brown]. He’s got it all going.”

Goff has thrown for 1,964 yards with 15 touchdown passes and just one interception, posting a 110.0 passer rating.

Remarkably, Goff did not throw an interception in the first seven games of the season.

His odds stand at +2700, the seventh-best on the board.

Goff has never finished higher than fifth in MVP voting, but he is on track for a career-high 4,770 passing yards this season.

Brady’s fourth pick was the surprise: Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs.

A non-quarterback has not won the NFL MVP award since 2012, when Adrian Peterson took the honor with the Minnesota Vikings.

Gibbs leads the league in scrimmage yards with 1,058 and scrimmage touchdowns.

Brady’s inclusion of a running back in the MVP conversation is notable, given the award’s recent history of being dominated by quarterbacks.

The NFL MVP is voted on by a panel of 50 sportswriters and broadcasters at the end of the regular season.

Since 2000, the award has gone to a quarterback 19 times, with only three non-quarterbacks winning: running back Adrian Peterson in 2012, running back LaDainian Tomlinson in 2006, and running back Shaun Alexander in 2005.

Wide receiver Jerry Rice remains the only non-running back non-quarterback to win the award, doing so in 1987.

The NFL MVP award is officially called the Associated Press NFL Most Valuable Player Award.

It has been awarded since 1957, and quarterbacks have won it 49 times, running backs 23 times, and other positions only once.

The MVP is determined by a vote that takes place after the regular season ends, typically in December or January.

Voters consider statistics, team success, and overall impact on the game.

Brady’s assessment of the race comes as the NFL season reaches its midpoint.

Week 9 is set to kick off, and the playoff picture is beginning to take shape.

The Bills are currently the No. 1 seed in the AFC, while the 49ers and Lions are both in strong positions in the NFC.

Allen has been the driving force behind Buffalo’s success this season.

His ability to both pass and run makes him a unique threat that defenses struggle to contain.

He has rushed for nine touchdowns in seven games, a pace that would give him over 20 rushing touchdowns for the season.

The NFL record for rushing touchdowns by a quarterback in a single season is 14, set by Cam Newton in 2011.

Allen has also thrown for 11 touchdowns, giving him 20 total touchdowns through seven games.

That puts him on pace for over 45 total touchdowns for the season.

Only a handful of quarterbacks in NFL history have reached that mark.

Allen won his first NFL MVP award in 2024, when he led the Bills to a 13-4 record and threw for 4,306 yards with 35 touchdowns and 10 interceptions.

He also rushed for 524 yards and 12 touchdowns that season.

A second MVP would put Allen in elite company.

Only 11 players in NFL history have won multiple MVP awards.

Peyton Manning holds the record with five, followed by Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady with four each.

Brady himself won three MVP awards with the New England Patriots, in 2007, 2010, and 2017.

He also finished second in MVP voting five times.

Brady now works as an NFL broadcaster for FOX Sports, where he provides analysis during games and on shows like “Ask Tom.”

His “Ask Tom” segment allows fans to submit questions, which Brady answers on air.

During the segment where he named his MVP candidates, Brady also discussed the toughest division he played against and other topics.

The MVP race is still wide open with nine weeks remaining in the regular season.

Allen is currently the favorite, but Purdy and Goff are both having strong seasons.

Gibbs, as a running back, faces long odds to win, but his inclusion in Brady’s list signals that his performance is being noticed.

The Lions are 6-1 and have one of the most explosive offenses in the league.

Gibbs leads the NFL in scrimmage yards, meaning he is the most productive player in the league when combining rushing and receiving yards.

Scrimmage yards are defined as total yards gained from both rushing and receiving plays.

Gibbs has 1,058 scrimmage yards through seven games, putting him on pace for over 2,400 for the season.