For Peyton, yes he set records in nearly every statistical category; but he played on a team loaded with three all pro receivers and a very solid rushing attack. Does being the best player on the best team make you the most valuable? In my opinion it shouldn't boil down to strictly numbers.
Take a guy like Tom Brady. He had an injury plagued team, 3 rookie receivers, and only 1 guy in Julian Edelman who he had any type of chemistry with. Yet he led them to a 12-4 record and a loss to Manning and the Broncos in the AFC Championship game. However, he only had a pedestrian 25 touchdown passes, 30 less then Peyton, and will most likely be overlooked in the voting. But it is his performance this season, overcoming every obstacle and continuously winning with his ragtag bunch of nobodies that I truly deem most valuable. Winning with nothing is far more impressive then running up scores and padding stats with a super team.
Same goes for King James. For the last 3 1/2 years he has been playing essentially on an all star team, ditching Cleveland to play alongside Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. Not to mention the Eastern Conference aside from three or four teams is pretty mediocre. Does being the greatest player in the world on the best team imaginable warrant 3 consecutive MVPs? You aren't truly the most valuable when you have an entire lineup of all stars by your side. But the media loves him and he is the current face of the league, so this fact seems to constantly get ignored.
So in steps Kevin Durant, the newly nicknamed Slim Reaper. With running mate Russell Westbrook once again sidelined due to injury, Durant has had to take over and has done so with flying colors. Averaging nearly 6 points more per game then Lebron, with more rebounds and nearly identical assist numbers he has led a much less talented Thunder team to the second best record in the NBA, only percentage points behind the Indiana Pacers. Will this be the year someone finally unseats the King?
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