Coming into the week, the Los Angeles Rams' quarterback was appearing to walk away with the MVP award with flying colors based on how well he and the team had been playing throughout the season.
His chances were bolstered even more thanks to the Week 15 loss by another favored MVP candidate, Drake Maye, and the New England Patriots.
However, with a critical loss in an overtime thriller to the Seattle Seahawks and the danger of losing the NFC West on 'Thursday Night Football' and Maye having the best performance of his young career against the Baltimore Ravens to clinch a playoff berth, throwing for a career high, 380 passing yards, and leading a fourth quarter comeback, it has arguably become anyone's reward.
Stafford and the Rams are currently the fifth seed in the NFC playoff picture at 11-4 and will be heavily favored to win their final two games of the season against the Atlanta Falcons and Arizona Cardinals, but don't control their own destiny to win the division and capture the top seed for the playoffs.
Whereas Maye and the Patriots have the luxury of winning the AFC East by taking care of business against division rivals, the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins, who will both miss the postseason, and still have a solid chance at the top seed in the AFC playoffs.
The fact of the NFC West being one of the most competitive divisions in the league, along with the conference as a whole, could bode well for the 17-year veteran, whether Los Angeles has a first-round bye or has to play a road wild-card game.
Also, Stafford still has the better stats than Maye and every other quarterback, throwing for 4,179 yards and 40 touchdowns, ranking first in both categories, and with only five interceptions, which is best in the top five in the league.
Although it may not be as obvious heading into the final two weeks of the season, regardless of what happens, Stafford has made it difficult for anyone to take the MVP award from him.
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