ESPN's poll of the NFL's top five MVP candidates includes four players who probably would not have been considered MVP candidates coming into this season (Derek Carr, Matt Ryan, Ezekiel Elliott and Dak Prescott).
That point illustrates how the 2016 NFL campaign could end up as a sea of change for the league, yet that view becomes even clearer when noting the volume of very strong dark-horse MVP candidates. Here are four to consider:
1. QB Kirk Cousins, Washington Redskins
One reason Washington was hesitant to give Cousins a long-term contract in the offseason was the question about his vertical passing (production on aerials traveling 11 or more yards downfield).
Cousins did rate fourth among passer-rated quarterbacks in vertical yards per attempt (YPA) over the course of the 2014 and 2015 seasons, but a lot of his 12.0-yard mark in that category was in part thanks to receiver DeSean Jackson. Cousins had a 19.6 vertical YPA mark on throws to Jackson in this time frame, a pace that was nearly double the 10.2 vertical YPA Cousins had on targets to other receivers.
