Myles Garrett played against both Lamar Jackson and Christian McCaffrey during the 2023 season, so his answer when asked who deserves the title of number one player in the NFL was an extremely interesting one.
Posed with that question as part of this year's NFL Top 100 series, the Cleveland Browns edge rusher Myles Garrett, who won Defensive Player of the Year for 2023, replied:
"Take myself out of the equation, I'd say C-Mac. Breaks through tackles, he runs hard every single time. Couldn't really stop the guy. I mean, running the ball, receiving the ball. The guy can throw as well. He has dedicated himself to each facet of the game, making sure he's as valuable to his team as possible. He's a renaissance man."
While Garrett would have McCaffrey top of the pile, the San Francisco 49ers running back did not prevail in the MVP race last season.
He missed out despite finishing the regular season tied for the league lead in touchdowns (21) while also ending the campaign as the only player to surpass 2,000 scrimmage yards (2,023).
McCaffrey made history by winning his first rushing title with 1,459 yards in a campaign that saw him equal Lenny Moore for the most consecutive games with a touchdown across the regular season and postseason. McCaffrey's streak was finally snapped at 17 games in the 49ers' Week 10 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
That remarkable production helped McCaffrey become the first 49ers player to win Offensive Player of the Year since Jerry Rice in 1993. He became only the second Niners running back to win the award, following in the footsteps of Roger Craig in 1988.
But in the end he did not come close to emulating Adrian Peterson and ending the 11-year wait for a running back to win the MVP award.
McCaffrey came third in the MVP voting behind Jackson and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, but he did not receive a single first-place vote. Jackson hoovered up 49 of the 50 first-place votes in securing his second MVP.
Garrett's assessment of McCaffrey suggests that was a mistake on the part of those who vote for the AP MVP award.
The fact that McCaffrey didn't even get a first-place vote even with all his incredible production is reflective of how difficult it is for a non-quarterback to win MVP in the modern NFL.
But, given his primacy in the 49ers' offense, McCaffrey heads into 2024 likely best placed among non-quarterbacks to end that position's monopoly on the game's most coveted individual prize.
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