Top 5 NFL MVP Candidates After 7 Weeks

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Top 5 Candidates for NFL MVP Heading Into Week 8

Top 5 Candidates for NFL MVP Heading Into Week 8
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Seven weeks of NFL action are in the books and the MVP race has been shaken up big time. A bye week didn't affect one of the mainstay candidates (as should be the case), one injured star on a team that lost actually moved up the list and one seemingly healthy star on a team that lost didn't fall at all in this week's rankings. Told ya things were crazy!

And once again, the best part about this list it's not all quarterbacks! Sure, there are quite a few signal-callers (what kind of NFL MVP list would this be if there weren't?), but there's one non-QB on the list who is more than deserving of a spot and if his team would help him out any, he'd likely be higher than he is now.

Before we spoil anything, here are the top five MVP candidates heading into Week 8.

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5. Calvin Johnson

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Calvin Johnson was an absolute animal in Week 7, even at less than 100% health. The man is the best pass-catcher in the league and it doesn't matter that the Lions lost -- he's easily a top-five MVP candidate at this point.

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4. Philip Rivers

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Philip Rivers is surprisingly on a rampage this year and don't look now, but his Chargers are in the thick of the playoff race and it's all because of him. The man is definitely the dark horse candidate for the MVP at this point.

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3. Drew Brees

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Drew Brees was off in Week 7, but that doesn't mean we forgot about him. Even with only six games under his belt, he's still fifth in the NFL in passing yards and is on pace to throw for well over 5,000 yet again. In other words, he's an MVP candidate.

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2. Andrew Luck

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Andrew Luck topped the man he replaced in Indianapolis in primetime while putting up one heck of a stat line in the process. He's no longer a dark horse to win the individual honor in his sophomore season.

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1. Peyton Manning

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Peyton Manning's team may have lost its first game of the season in Week 7, but he still threw for almost 400 yards and three touchdowns again and brought his team back from a huge deficit in the second half after a slow start. This man is will win his 5th MVP later this year.

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