Lamar Jackson of the Ravens is once again fighting for the top spot

Lamar Jackson ran toward the goal line, casually stopped at the 1 and quickly crossed the plane with the football for a 10-yard touchdown run.

Jackson’s 40-yard touchdown pass to Rashod Bateman just before halftime gave the Ravens a lead they never relinquished. His touchdown pass to Mark Andrews and a 51-yard touchdown run from Justice Hill tied the game in the fourth quarter.

Jackson and the Ravens got back on track, bouncing back from their loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 11 with a 30-23 win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday Night Football.

Was Jackson’s performance enough to secure the top spot in the MVP race?

Here are our USA TODAY Sports NFL MVP rankings after Week 12:

NFL STATISTICS CENTER: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.

5. Eagles QB Jalen hurts, equal

Jalen Hurts did just enough to stay in fifth place in our MVP rankings. And by just enough, we mean passing the ball to Saquan Barkley.

The Eagles’ star running back scored two touchdowns of 70 yards or more in Sunday night’s 37-20 win over the Rams. The Eagles gained 481 yards, 255 of which came on the ground from Barkley, while Hurts threw a touchdown pass and completed 15 of 22 passes for 179 yards in the win.

Does Barkley deserve real MVP consideration here? Sure, but that’s a quarterback award. Hurts has also used his share of tush-push touchdowns to increase his lead this season, and has one more rushing touchdown than Barkley in Week 12 (11 for 10).

Hurts ranks in the top 10 with a 69.1 completion percentage, 102.3 passer rating and 63.7 QBR while adding 13 touchdown passes for the 9-2 Eagles, who trail in the NFC playoff race The Detroit Lions are in first place.

4. Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes, stock even

The reigning two-time Super Bowl champions were tied with 1:46 left – a week after their first loss of the season – against one of the worst teams in the NFL that was in rebuilding mode.

So Patrick Mahomes did what Patrick Mahomes does. He put on his cape and saved the Chiefs. Mahomes broke free for a 33-yard run and set up Spencer Schrader’s game-winning 31-yard kick in a 30-27 win over the Carolina Panthers.

The Chiefs won the way they have typically won games this season: It was the fifth time this season they won in the final seconds and their eighth win by a point.

It was enough to keep the Chiefs stable after Week 12, with the best record in the AFC and Mahomes’ MVP fall.

3. Lions quarterback Jared Goff, stock down

Jared Goff delivered another game-winning performance in Detroit’s 24-6 victory over the Indianapolis Colts, completing 26 of 36 passes for 269 yards. It was Detroit’s ninth straight victory, keeping the Lions in first place in the NFC playoff standings.

The Lions relied on two rushing touchdowns from Jahmyr Gibbs and a rushing touchdown from David Montgomery to get to their 10th-place finish^Th Win of the season.

Goff has the second-best completion percentage in the NFL at 72.9, just behind Miami’s Tua Tagovailoa. His 20 touchdown passes are fifth in the NFL, while his 9.0 yards per attempt leads the league.

If Goff can convert some of his touchdown handoffs into touchdown passes, his MVP case would improve significantly.

2. Bills QB Josh Allen, inventory down

The Bills (9-2) had a bye in Week 12 and host the struggling San Francisco 49ers on Sunday Night Football this week.

Sorry, Josh. The MVP race waits for no one. But you have a good chance of regaining the top spot next week.

1. Ravens QB Lamar Jackson, stock up

Jackson threw two touchdowns and ran for another in Baltimore’s 30-23 win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday Night Football.

Jackson leads the NFL with 27 touchdown passes (tied with Joe Burrow), while he also leads the league with 3,053 passing yards, a QBR of 75.9 and a quarterback rating of 117.9.

The stats undeniably prove that Jackson is ahead of the competition for what could be his third NFL MVP.

It was a nice comeback game for Jackson and the Ravens, who lost 18-16 to the Steelers last week. They face Hurts and the Eagles in Week 13 in a game that could heavily influence this season’s MVP conversations.

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Lamar Jackson of the Ravens is once again fighting for the top spot

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