Most Valuable Player of the Year Award

The Most Valuable Player of the Year Award is presented by the Pro Football Writers of America to the top player in the National Football League (NFL). Since its start, the winner has been selected by polling all active members of the Pro Football Writers of America.

NOTES: Bold entries denote players who went on to become members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame; Year fields link to the NFL season in review page, winner's names link to the player's page and team name links to the official roster for the year in which the player won the Most Valuable Player of the Year Award.

""The best defensive player of all time was the original 'LT,' Lawrence Taylor. Not only is he the greatest defensive player, you could make a case for him being the best player ever on either side of the football. Taylor is the only player in NFL history to win three NFL defensive player of the year awards. He is also only one of a handful of defensive players to be named the league's most valuable player. LT changed the way the game was played at the outside linebacker position. He was a phenomenal stand-up pass-rusher who could not be single-blocked." - Sportswriter Jeremy Green on ESPN.com (03/26/2007, Who is the best defensive player in NFL history?)

Most Valuable Player of the Year Award Pro Football Writers of America Most Valuable Player of the Year Award on Football Almanac
Year	Winner^(Quantity)	Position	Team / Roster^{(Franchise Qty)}
1975	Fran Tarkenton⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	1975 Minnesota Vikings⁽¹⁾
1976	Bert Jones⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	1976 Baltimore Colts⁽¹⁾
1977	Walter Payton⁽¹⁾	Running Back	1977 Chicago Bears⁽¹⁾
1978	Earl Campbell⁽¹⁾	Fullback	1978 Houston Oilers⁽¹⁾
1979	Earl Campbell⁽²⁾	Fullback	1979 Houston Oilers⁽²⁾
1980	Brian Sipe⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	1980 Cleveland Browns⁽¹⁾
1981	Ken Anderson⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	1981 Cincinnati Bengals⁽¹⁾
1982	Dan Fouts⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	1982 San Diego Chargers⁽¹⁾
1983	Joe Theismann⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	1983 Washington Redskins⁽¹⁾
1984	Dan Marino⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	1984 Miami Dolphins⁽¹⁾
1985	Marcus Allen⁽¹⁾	Running Back	1985 Los Angeles Raiders⁽¹⁾
1986	Lawrence Taylor⁽¹⁾	Linebacker	1986 New York Giants⁽¹⁾
1987	Jerry Rice⁽¹⁾	Wide Receiver	1987 San Francisco 49ers⁽¹⁾
1988	Boomer Esiason⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	1988 Cincinnati Bengals⁽¹⁾
1989	Joe Montana⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	1989 San Francisco 49ers⁽²⁾
1990	Randall Cunningham⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	1990 Philadelphia Eagles⁽¹⁾
1991	Thurman Thomas⁽¹⁾	Running Back	1991 Buffalo Bills⁽¹⁾
1992	Steve Young⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	1992 San Francisco 49ers⁽³⁾
1993	Emmitt Smith⁽¹⁾	Running Back	1993 Dallas Cowboys⁽¹⁾
1994	Steve Young⁽²⁾	Quarterback	1994 San Francisco 49ers⁽⁴⁾
1995	Brett Favre⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	1995 Green Bay Packers⁽¹⁾
1996	Brett Favre⁽²⁾	Quarterback	1996 Green Bay Packers⁽²⁾
1997	Barry Sanders⁽¹⁾	Running Back	1997 Detroit Lions⁽¹⁾
1998	Terrell Davis⁽¹⁾	Running Back	1998 Denver Broncos⁽¹⁾
1999	Kurt Warner⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	1999 St. Louis Rams⁽¹⁾
2000	Marshall Faulk⁽¹⁾	Running Back	2000 St. Louis Rams⁽²⁾
2001	Marshall Faulk⁽²⁾	Running Back	2001 St. Louis Rams⁽³⁾
2002	Rich Gannon⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	2002 Oakland Raiders⁽²⁾
2003	Jamal Lewis⁽¹⁾	Running Back	2003 Baltimore Ravens⁽¹⁾
2004	Peyton Manning⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	2004 Indianapolis Colts⁽²⁾
2005	Shaun Alexander⁽¹⁾	Running Back	2005 Seattle Seahawks⁽¹⁾
2006	LaDainian Tomlinson⁽¹⁾	Running Back	2006 San Diego Chargers⁽²⁾
2007	Tom Brady⁽¹⁾	Quarterback	2007 New England Patriots⁽¹⁾
2008	Peyton Manning⁽²⁾	Quarterback	2008 Indianapolis Colts⁽³⁾
2009	Peyton Manning⁽³⁾	Quarterback	2009 Indianapolis Colts⁽⁴⁾
2010	Not Yet Announced^(01-2011)	--	--
Year	Winner^(Quantity)	Position	Team / Roster^{(Franchise Qty)}
Most Valuable Player of the Year Award on Football Almanac

Did you know that there have been one linebacker, one wide receiver, thirteen unning backs, and nineteen quarterbacks who have won the Most Valuable Player of the Year Award?

A breakdown of other official NFL most valuable player awards: The Joe F. Carr Trophy (1938-1946), the United Press International NFL MVP (1948-1969), the Newspaper Enterprise Association NFL MVP (1955-Today), and the Associated Press NFL MVP (1957-Today).

Which player on the chart above deserved the Most Valuable Player of the Year Award the least? Which player "should" have won during that particular season? Share your opinion on Pigskin Fever.

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