Heading into the final stretch of the 2025 NFL season, New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye is the betting favorite to win the league MVP award. His rapid rise to stardom in just his second season makes him one of the hottest upcoming young players in football, and he has his team on top of the AFC standings at just 23 years old.
If he does hold on and capitalize on his -135 sportsbook designation, would Maye be the youngest player to ever take home MVP honors?
Would Drake Maye Be The Youngest NFL MVP Ever?
The short answer is no. But he’d still be in extremely rare company.
The record for youngest MVP ever belongs to Browns legendary running back Jim Brown, who won the award at just 21 years old back in 1957. He would win it again the following season, and Lamar Jackson joined him in 2019 as the only 22-year-olds to take home the hardware.
QBs to win 10 straight games with an 80+ passer rating in a single season prior to age 24 (Since 1950):
HOF Dan Marino
>Drake Maye pic.twitter.com/5uIEoz7jgH— NFL+ (@NFLPlus) December 2, 2025
Patrick Mahomes won his first MVP award when he was 23, turning his 2018 campaign into the launch point of a Hall of Fame-tracking career. If Maye were to win it at 23, he wouldn’t break the record, but he would join one of the most exclusive age groups in league history.
Entering the season, New England was widely expected to be rebuilding, focused more on development than contention. Instead, they are the first NFL team this year to reach 11 wins, and are in first place in their conference after winning 10 straight games. Maye has been a massive part of the team’s success, as he currently leagues the league in passing yards, completion percentage, as well as overall passer rating.
He has also made his mark by delivering important performances in prime time games in front of national audiences.
Maye Has Implied MVP Odds Of 57%
The age debate adds an interesting dynamic to his candidacy. While he wouldn’t become the youngest MVP ever, winning it at 23 would place Maye in the same conversation as Mahomes and Jackson, two of the top players in the game over the last 7+ years. That alone carries massive implications for how the league would view Maye’s long-term ceiling.
DRAKE MAYE IS NOW MVP FAVE AGAIN pic.twitter.com/PB85aPE0sj
— DraftKings Sportsbook (@DKSportsbook) December 2, 2025
Is there any chance of Drake Maye losing his standing as a favorite to win the 2025 NFL MVP? It is currently a two-man race, with he and Matthew Stafford being the only two players with realistic odds of receiving the honors. Stafford is listed at +125, with the next-lowest figure being the +1400 attached to Dak Prescott.
