A little over a month ago, it looked like Caleb Williams’ 2026 season would be over before it had hardly begun. After rushing toward the front pylon of the end zone in the Bears’ Week 2 matchup against the Vikings, the quarterback fell to the ground, untouched, and was carted to the locker room with tears in his eyes while pumping his fist toward the crowd at Soldier Field.

Luckily, what looked to be a serious non-contact injury turned out to be only a hamstring strain, which kept him out for three weeks while Chicago managed to keep itself afloat.

The quarterback has since returned to the lineup, led the Bears on a three-game winning streak—capped by their dominant performance against the Seahawks on Monday Night Football to close out Week 8—and now finds himself firmly in the NFL’s MVP conversation at the season’s midway point.

Williams’s rapid rise as one of the league’s best young signal-callers is one to watch as we revisit the MVP race this month. Of course, as we did last time, it’s worth noting that the conversation has largely started and ended with those behind center for more than a decade. Quarterbacks have now taken home the MVP award in each of the past 13 seasons. In the 13 years before that, only four running backs—Marshall Faulk, Shaun Alexander, LaDainian Tomlinson and Adrian Peterson—had won the honor.

With that in mind, we start our monthly MVP stock watch with 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, who remains in the conversation despite San Francisco losing its first game of the season in Week 7 before having its bye this past weekend.

5. Brock Purdy, QB, San Francisco 49ers

2026 stats: 146-for-211 (69.2%), 1,748 yards, 15 touchdowns, four interceptions, 110.1 passer rating, one rushing touchdown
Last month’s ranking: 1

Purdy earned the No. 1 spot in last month’s rankings after leading the 49ers to a 4–0 record while playing the most efficient football of his career. Through the first four weeks of the season, he threw 11 touchdowns and only one interception while maintaining his spot atop the NFL record books with a career 105.6 passer rating—the highest in league history.

The past three games, however, haven’t been quite as kind to Purdy. After going virtually untouched over the first month of the season, the 26-year-old has now been sacked seven times since Week 5. His efficiency has also taken a hit, as he’s posted a passer rating of 100.0 or better just once over the past three games after reaching that threshold in each of the first four weeks.

Still, with a 15:4 touchdown-to-interception ratio, a 6–1 record and a 69.2% completion percentage that ranks third in the NFL, Purdy remains in the MVP hunt.

4. Caleb Williams, QB, Chicago Bears

2026 stats: 112-for-158 (70.9%), 1,267 yards, six touchdowns, one interception, 104.6 passer rating, two rushing touchdowns
Last month’s ranking: NR

Even after missing three games with a hamstring injury, it’s fair to argue that Williams has done enough to crack the top five of the MVP race.

Through five games, the third-year pro has completed 70.9% of his passes—second-best in the NFL behind only Joe Burrow and a massive improvement from his 58.1% mark last season—for 1,267 yards and six touchdowns. The Bears have also yet to trail in a game since his return, holding a lead for 158:33 of 180 minutes with the only ties coming at 0–0. 

On Monday night, while the Bears were paced by running back D’Andre Swift’s three rushing touchdowns, Williams’s innate playmaking ability was also on display. The quarterback went 24-for-34 for 247 yards and a touchdown while making play after play to keep several Chicago drives alive.

“It goes back to training camp and OTAs when we’re doing these long-drive drills,” Williams told ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt after the game, in reference to the offense’s monster 8:32 opening drive. “... We are a smashmouth football team. That’s our identity. And we come up with cool, innovative things to be able to create explosives. That’s all it is. Reverting back to who we are, and we did that today.”

Now 6–2, the Bears hold the top spot in the NFC’s wild-card race, with Williams quickly making a case to be among the league’s top quarterbacks.

3. Trevor Lawrence, QB, Jacksonville Jaguars

2026 stats: 130-for-198 (65.7%), 1,690 yards, 17 touchdowns, four interceptions, 112.6 passer rating
Last month’s ranking: 3

Even as the Jaguars fly somewhat under the radar despite sitting at 5–2 while owning the league’s second-best scoring defense, Lawrence continues to play like one of the best quarterbacks in the league. 

In Jacksonville’s 42–7 drubbing of the Colts in Week 8, Lawrence went an efficient 10-of-14 passing for 210 yards and three touchdowns, while his near-perfect 153.3 passer rating bolstered his league-leading 112.6 mark on the season.

“He’s like that,” Jaguars coach Liam Coen said of Lawrence after the win, referring to his second-quarter touchdown pass to tight end Nate Boerkircher. “He’s making plays, giving us those off-schedule plays but also being able to flip his hips and make a long throw like that. … When Trevor’s doing those kind of things, you feel like he’s in a rhythm. He’s in a flow, he’s seeing it, and able to just react and go play.”

Lawrence’s 17 touchdown passes are the third-most in the NFL behind only Burrow and Kirk Cousins, while his 8.5 yards per attempt ranks second and his 65.7% completion percentage 11th. 

2. Josh Allen, QB, Buffalo Bills

2026 stats: 135-for-205 (65.9%), 1,793 yards, 11 touchdowns, five interceptions, 101.1 passer rating, nine rushing touchdowns
Last month’s ranking: 4

Allen continued to do Josh Allen things on Sunday, racking up 300-plus total yards and three total touchdowns in the Bills’ 36–10 win over the Ravens.

This year, Allen has now thrown for 11 touchdowns and rushed for nine more, giving him 20 that’s tied for the second-most in the NFL behind only Burrow. His 8.7 yards per attempt lead all qualified quarterbacks through eight weeks, while his 101.1 passer rating ranks eighth and his 65.9% completion percentage sits at 10th. Allen is also commanding a Bills offense that ranks first in scoring (33.3 points per game) and second in total offense (393.1 yards per game).

If the 30-year-old keeps this up, it will be hard to argue he won’t once again find himself in the thick of the MVP race come season’s end.

1. Joe Burrow, QB, Cincinnati Bengals

2026 stats: 195-for-267 (73.0%), 2,115 yards, 20 touchdowns, six interceptions, 111.6 passer rating, two rushing touchdowns
Last month’s ranking: NR

We’ve referenced Burrow quite a bit in this story so far, and for good reason. The seventh-year pro turned in one of the best performances of his career in Week 8, completing 79% of his passes for 462 yards, five touchdowns and a 111.5 passer rating while leading the Bengals to a 42–36 comeback win over the Titans. Burrow also added a game-winning rushing touchdown in overtime, with his six total scores marking a new career-high.

The Cincinnati quarterback has now accounted for 22 total touchdowns this season, the most in the NFL, while throwing for 2,115 yards (fourth-most in the league, but the most among quarterbacks who have already had their bye) and posting a 111.6 passer rating, second only to Lawrence. Burrow also leads the NFL with a 73.0% completion rate and ranks seventh in yards per attempt, all while leading the Bengals to the second-most points per game (29.4).

Better yet, the Bengals are now 5–2 after a slow 2–2 start and own the No. 6 seed in the AFC playoff picture. Put it all together, and it’s hard to find a better MVP résumé than Burrow’s through the first eight weeks of the NFL season.