NFL MVP tracker: Rams' Todd Gurley quickly closing gap on Patriots' Tom Brady

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SportsPulse: USA TODAY Sports'Jarrett Bell on a wild weekend of NFL football and the scenarios for Week 17. USA TODAY Sports

From Week 1 through Week 17, USA TODAY Sports' NFL staff will be handicapping the race for league MVP. A first-place vote is worth five points, a second-place vote is worth three, and a third-place vote is worth one.

Our MVP tracker after Week 16's games:

1. QB Tom Brady, New England Patriots (34 points): He garnered five of eight first-place votes from our panel but is no longer the shoo-in he appeared to be a few weeks ago after injuries waylaid Carson Wentz and Antonio Brown. Brady's in the midst of a pedestrian December (64.7% completion rate, 4 TDs, 5 INTs, 81.5 QB rating) and has been picked off in five consecutive games for the first time in 15 years. He does lead the NFL with 4,387 passing yards, and his 30 TDs are most in the AFC. And an average year on the Brady scale would be MVP-caliber for almost anyone else. Last week: 1

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2. RB Todd Gurley, Los Angeles Rams (30 points): He'd surely be the choice of countless fantasy football owners, many of whom won titles based on Gurley's past two weeks (456 yards from scrimmage, six TDs). In reality, that spurt also vaulted the Rams to their first NFC West title in 14 years. Gurley now leads the league in rushing (1,305 yards), his 2,093 yards from scrimmage are 147 more than his closes pursuer (Le'Veon Bell), and his 19 TDs are six better than anyone else. Gurley's re-emergence has also been a huge factor in QB Jared Goff's development this year. Last week: 2

3. QB Carson Wentz, Philadelphia Eagles (3 points): His 33 TD passes for the NFC's top-seeded team are still the league standard even though he'll remain stuck on 13 games with his torn ACL. Watching the Eagles noticeably struggle to move the ball and put points on the board against an average-at-best Raiders defense Monday night could reignite some momentum for Wentz. Last week: T8

Also receiving votes: Russell Wilson (2), Le'Veon Bell (1), Antonio Brown (1), Case Keenum (1)
 
— Week 15 MVP rankings (Tom Brady)
— Week 14 MVP rankings (Carson Wentz)
— Week 13 MVP rankings (Tom Brady) 
— Week 12 MVP rankings (Carson Wentz)
— Week 11 MVP rankings (Carson Wentz)
— Week 10 MVP rankings (Carson Wentz)
— Week 9 MVP rankings (Carson Wentz)
— Week 8 MVP rankings (Carson Wentz)
— Week 7 MVP rankings (Carson Wentz)
— Week 6 MVP rankings (Alex Smith)
— Week 5 MVP rankings (Alex Smith)
— Week 4 MVP rankings (Alex Smith)
— Week 3 MVP rankings (Alex Smith)
— Week 2 MVP rankings (Alex Smith)
— Week 1 MVP rankings (Alex Smith)

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Follow Nate Davis on Twitter @ByNateDavis

PHOTOS: NFL power rankings

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NFL Week 17 Power Rankings

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32. Browns (Last Week: 32): When they last drafted No. 1 overall in consecutive years, they picked Tim Couch and Courtney Brown. Let's hope it turns out better this time.  Kamil Krzaczynski, USA TODAY Sports

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31. Giants (31): The latest scar from this forgettable/unforgettable season – Sunday's shutout loss at Arizona marked first time franchise has lost 13 games.  Mark J. Rebilas, USA TODAY Sports

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30. Texans (29): In a season riddled with disappointment, Houston got a feel-good story Monday as cancer survivor David Quessenberry finally got onto field.  Troy Taormina, USA TODAY Sports

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29. Colts (28): Though it never really felt like this team had a chance in 2017, Indianapolis almost always played hard and made it interesting. Props, Coach P.  Tommy Gilligan, USA TODAY Sports

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28. Jets (26): A team positioned to be a player in free agency in 2018 will add $11 million more in cap space once it's able to finally fire DL Muhammad Wilkerson.  Kirby Lee, USA TODAY Sports

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27. Broncos (25): Nothing summed up this season better than Brock Osweiler screaming on the sideline at teammates who couldn't have been more disinterested.  Brad Mills, USA TODAY Sports

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26. Bengals (30): After sleepwalking through previous two games, give them credit for providing Marvin Lewis with a victorious send-off in his final home game.  David Kohl, USA TODAY Sports

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25. Bears (27): Over last three weeks, opponents averaging mere 260 yards against Chicago's defense – perhaps primary reason this team could roar in 2018.  Patrick Gorski, USA TODAY Sports

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24. Dolphins (24): No team has run the ball fewer times in 2017 than Miami. Adam Gase must find some balance in 2018 as Ryan Tannehill works his way back.  Jay Biggerstaff, USA TODAY Sports

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23. Buccaneers (23): On verge of eating his first W in nearly three months, then seeing it slip away, we can understand why Jameis Winston lost his mind Sunday.  Jeremy Brevard, USA TODAY Sports

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22. Cardinals (22): For a guy who resisted moving to the slot a few years ago, Larry Fitzgerald might start there in our all-time lineup (with Rice, Moss outside).  Matt Kartozian, USA TODAY Sports

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21. Packers (18): Brett Hundley is almost Aaron Rodgers on road (8 TD, 3 INT, 97.6 QB rating) and just about DeShone Kizer at Lambeau (0 TD, 7 INT, 50.6 QB rating).  Jeff Hanisch, USA TODAY Sports

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20. Raiders (20): Who would have thought two months ago that Oakland might be the Bay Area team with more quarterback questions entering 2018?  Bill Streicher, USA TODAY Sports

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19. 49ers (21): As impressive as stats and 4-0 record are, Jimmy Garoppolo's poise and offensive command in totally new environment should also excite Niner Nation.  Kyle Terada, USA TODAY Sports

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18. Redskins (19): They have nearly a dozen starters on injured reserve. Using that prism, case to be made this is Jay Gruden's finest coaching performance.  Brad Mills, USA TODAY Sports

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17. Lions (15): Detroit clearly has significant issues on both sides of ball. But no excuse to lose to a cratering Bengals club with playoffs still in reach.  Aaron Doster, USA TODAY Sports

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16. Bills (16): Desperately trying to break playoff hex, they hardly look ready for step up. Buffalo is 2-5 this year against teams still in postseason picture.  David Butler II, USA TODAY Sports

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15. Cowboys (14): Another difference between Dak Prescott's rookie year and 2017 – he had five fourth-quarter comebacks in 2016 but not one this season.  Tim Heitman, USA TODAY Sports

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14. Titans (17): What happened to their vaunted run game? Losers of four of past six, Tennessee has only hit century mark on ground once in that span.  Christopher Hanewinckel, USA TODAY Sports

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13. Chargers (13): Good to see Melvin Gordon finally notch a 1,000-yard season after injuries left him hung on 997 yards in the final weeks of 2016.  Vincent Carchietta, USA TODAY Sports

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12. Seahawks (12): Can anyone explain why Earl Thomas suddenly seems so unhappy to be part of one of the greatest defenses in NFL history?  Erich Schlegel, USA TODAY Sports

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11. Falcons (9): With one game to go, Matt Ryan has exactly half as many TD passes (19) as he had in 2016 and hasn't thrown more than two in a game this year.  Derick E. Hingle, USA TODAY Sports

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10. Chiefs (11): With 450 yards from scrimmage and four TDs in last three games, Kareem Hunt has peeled himself off rookie wall and revitalized surging team.  Denny Medley, USA TODAY Sports

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9. Ravens (10): S Eric Weddle's whitened Santa Claus beard was cool, unfortunately he played a little too much like Santa Claus, dropping an easy INT.  Patrick Semansky, AP

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8. Jaguars (7): Sunday gave us regression from Blake Bortles, a putrid defensive showing and sideline infighting. Maybe they're not ready to make playoff noise.  Kelley L Cox, USA TODAY Sports

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7. Eagles (8): They may have (barely) locked up NFC’s home field Monday night, but Philly hardly looked like a team ready to thrive in January’s elements.  Bill Streicher, USA TODAY Sports

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6. Panthers (6): Is Julius Peppers really 37 years old? With his 11th sack of season Sunday and two fumble recoveries, he dominated Father Time once again  Jeremy Brevard, USA TODAY Sports

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5. Saints (5): Congrats to Drew Brees, who bypassed 70,000 yards Sunday. He's probably six regular-season games away from overtaking Peyton Manning (71,940).  Derick E. Hingle, USA TODAY Sports

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4. Rams (4): If MVPs are defined as players who step up in clutch, then consider Todd Gurley's 456 total yards, six TDs last two weeks as L.A. clinched division.  Jim Brown, USA TODAY Sports

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3. Vikings (3): As long as S Harrison Smith receives deserved recognition as an all-pro, we can slough off his ridiculous exclusion from Pro Bowl.  Adam Wesley, USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin

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2. Steelers (2): Le'Veon Bell is first player in three years to get 400-plus touches in a season. Hopefully plenty left in tank as he seeks long-term deal.  Erik Williams, USA TODAY Sports

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1. Patriots (1): Ground game has quietly exceeded 190 yards in three of past five games, a nice fallback given Tom Brady has six INTs over same stretch.  David Butler II, USA TODAY Sports

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