 The NFL MVP is one of the most prestigious honors that any player can earn. It symbolizes that you were the man and the best player in the entire league that year. A panel of 50 NFL riders and analysts cast their vote every year following the regular season. The winner is either someone who is most deserving or someone that leaves a scratch in her head in confusion. I'm Hasan Khan from Time to Football and here are 10 players who should have won the NFL MVP award but didn't. 10. Drew Brees in 2009 In 2009, Peyton Manning ended up winning the MVP award. Manning had a great season but it wasn't even the best year by a quarterback that season. Drew Brees completed 70.6 percent of his passes, better than Manning's 68.8. Brees threw for 34 touchdowns as opposed to Manning's 33. Brees threw for only 11 interceptions as opposed to Manning's 16. And to top it all off, Brees had a 109.6 passer rating. Brees only ranks 10th on this list because the stats are still somewhat similar to Manning's. But if Brees had slightly better stats, why didn't Brees slightly outvote Manning for the MVP award? I mean the voting wasn't even close. Manning ended up with 25 more votes than Brees. It's one of those mysteries that we'll never know the answer to. 9. Gale Sayers in 1965 As a rookie, Sayers put up 22 combined touchdowns. Not only that, but he totaled over 2,200 all-purpose yards for the Bears. Brown's running back Jim Brown ended up winning the award. Brown had 21 touchdowns, which is less than the 22 that Sayers put up. Brown also totaled around 1,500 yards, which is still 700 yards less than Sayers. The yardage alone should have given Sayers the nod. 8. Roger Staubach in 1971 Who was 13-0 as a starter while posting a 1-4.8 quarterback rating for the Cowboys, which was hard to do almost 15 years ago. Allen Page won the MVP in 1971. Though sacks were not a statistic back then, Page did record three fumble recoveries and two safeties. The biggest reason for him winning is because the Vikings defense seemed unstoppable. But what about the other 10 players on that defense? Shouldn't they be in consideration for the MVP award as well? 7. Kurt Warner or Philip Rivers in 2008 No, I don't hate Peyton Manning. In fact, I think he had the best season by any quarterback and NFL history in 2013. No questions asked. However, the 27 touchdowns he threw in 2008 doesn't really scream MVP status. Even though the Colts had a great record, there were better performers at his position that year. Kurt Warner threw for over 4,500 yards in 30 touchdowns, while Philip Rivers eclipsed 4,000 yards and threw for 34 touchdowns. Granted, the Cardinals and Chargers finished 9-7 and 8-8 respectively, but Manning statistically did not have his best season that year. You can even argue James Harrison, Michael Turner, or even Ed Reed could have won the MVP in 2008. 6. Dan Fouts in 1982 So this is a weird one. In 1982, the NFL players went on a strike for 57 days, shortening the 16-game season down to just 9 games. Chargers quarterback Dan Fouts threw for 2,800 yards, which doesn't sound like much, but keep in mind that he threw that in only 9 games. If he played a full 16-game season, he would have thrown for 5,100 yards. So who won the MVP award in 1982? It was Washington Redskins kicker Mark Mosley. Yep, I said kicker. Mosley was 20 for 21 on field goals, including multiple game-winning field goals. Fouts has a strong case for why he should have won. 5. Eric Dickerson in 1983 In 1983, Eric Dickerson had arguably the best season by any rookie running back. He rushed for over 1,800 yards and had 20 total touchdowns as a rookie. So who won the MVP in 1983? Redskins quarterback Joe Thysman. Thysman passed for 29 touchdowns, which back then was pretty good, but to eclipse 2,000 scrimmage yards and 20 touchdowns is something else. Whenever you are making history and having one of the best seasons at your position, then you should win the MVP award. Thysman did not make history. Dickerson did. 4. Derek Thomas in 1990 When players like Derek Thomas get overlooked in favor of the most popular player in the most popular position, it does irk me a bit. Derek Thomas recorded 20 sacks in 1990, including 7 sacks in one game, which is still a single-game record. He made history at his position. Who won the MVP in 1990? 49ers quarterback Joe Montana, who recorded 26 touchdowns, less than 4,000 yards passing and 16 interceptions. Seems like an average season for a quarterback. Even Randall Cunningham, who rushed for over 900 yards and threw for 30 touchdowns to only 13 interceptions, had a better quarterback season than Montana. Montana was MVP mainly because he was 14-1 as a starter that year. A team's success shouldn't solely be the reason for winning MVP honors. 3. Priest Holmes in 2003 Sean Alexander won the MVP award in 2005 after rushing for 27 touchdowns. Priest Holmes did not. In 2003, Chiefs running back Priest Holmes ran for 27 touchdowns, which at that time was a new single-season record that he said. Yet, he only received three of the possible 50 votes. Peyton Manning, who I do not hate, and Steve McNair ended up sharing the award with both notching up 16 votes each. Manning threw for 29 touchdowns, which is good, but was average in Manning's eyes, and McNair threw for only 24. It was a perfect example of voting for the quarterback on the best team that year. 2. JJ Watt in 2014 This one probably infuriates me the most. In 2014, JJ Watt recorded 20.5 sacks, 78 tackles for a defensive end, which is impressive. Five fumble recoveries in interception, two defensive touchdowns, oh, and three touchdowns on offense. Yes, three receiving touchdowns for a defensive end. What more does the man have to do? So who won the MVP that year? Aaron Rogers. Rogers had an impressive season with 38 touchdowns at only five interceptions, but he did not make history at his position. JJ Watt made history. Let's use this analogy. Let's say for this example, sacks are to a defensive end. What passing touchdowns are to a quarterback? The NFA record for passing touchdowns in the season is 55. Rogers threw 38. The record for most sacks in the season is 22.5. Watt had 20.5. So if you find a common denominator, convert those sacks into passing touchdowns, then if Watt was a quarterback, he would have thrown 50.1 touchdowns that year. You're telling me that 50 touchdowns won't win an MVP? Plus the tackles and fumble recoveries for extra fluff to pad his stats? Now, many of you are going to say, well, Rogers is the more valuable player. Without him, the Packers would not be as good. The Texans are the same team without JJ Watt. And to that, I have to say to you, there is no definitive way of proving that. Who knows? What if the Texans were in a situation where they needed the ball back and one of Watt sacks led to a fourth down that caused the opposing team to punt and the Texans were able to score and win the game? And if you specifically disagree with my point about how JJ Watt should have won the MVP in 2014, then debate with me. I will stand by this point till I die. Okay, I've spent way too much time on this. Bottom line, sports riders need to quit their obsession with quarterbacks. And number one, Jerry Rice in 1987. Before Randy Moss broke it in 2007, Jerry Rice had a record 22 receiving touchdowns in 1987. What's even crazier is that he did this in only 12 games. Not 16, 12. If Rice did play 16 games, he would have had close to 30 receiving touchdowns. So who won the MVP award in 1987? Yep, another quarterback, John Elway. Elway threw only 19 touchdowns to 12 interceptions. To put that in perspective, Rice had more receiving touchdowns than Elway had passing touchdowns. My goodness, the obsession with quarterbacks is unreal. Feel like I left someone off the list? Let me know by leaving a comment down below or hitting me up on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter which the links to all social media sites is located in the description. Also, subscribe to this YouTube channel for more NFL content and top 10 lists.