Christian McCaffrey Should Be the NFL MVP Favorite

For weeks NFL pundits have waffled on who the MVP frontrunner should be. This week, everyone seem to settle on Dak Prescott as the unquestioned top pick. Then the Dallas Cowboys were throttled by the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. Now eyes are searching for another player to anoint. The answer has been there all along. San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey should be the favorite. And, at this point, there shouldn't be much discussion.

The 49ers dominated the Arizona Cardinals 45-29 this week with their star running back doing the heavy lifting. While Brock Purdy threw for four touchdowns and people are beginning to add coal to the engine of his hype train, McCaffrey is the one driving San Francisco's offense.

The two-time All-Pro was everywhere on Sunday, rushing for 115 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries (6.4 yards per carry), while catching five passes for 72 yards and two more touchdowns. It was more of the same from McCaffrey, who has turned in similar performances all season.

After Sunday's action, the 27-year-old has now rushed for 1,292 yards and 13 touchdowns on 224 carries (5.3 yards per carry). He also has 57 receptions for 509 yards and seven touchdowns (8.9 yards per catch). In total, that's 1,801 total yards and 20 touchdown on 281 touches, and 6.41 yards per touch. This is where I remind you that the 11-3 49ers have three more games remaining for McCaffrey to rack up huge numbers.

McCaffrey is currently leading the NFL in rushing by more than 200 yards -- Raheem Mostert is second with 966. Tyreek Hill is his closest competition in total yardage with 1,557. Perhaps more impressively, McCaffrey has topped 100 total yards in 11 of 14 games this season. That's remarkable. Oh, and the 49ers currently hold the top seed in the NFC and just clinched another NFC West title.

Purdy is having a great season, but the 49ers would be in trouble without McCaffrey. He's the rare running back who is absolutely worth his big contract. I get that the NFL is a quarterback league now, but McCaffrey is the best player on the NFL's top team right now. He should be the unquestioned favorite to win the MVP.