Drake Maye fell just one vote short of winning the NFL MVP award, with the deciding ballot going to someone who was not even a finalist.
The New England Patriots quarterback finished narrowly behind Matthew Stafford in one of the closest MVP races the league has seen.
In the end, a single first-place vote made the difference, blocking the second-year quarterback from winning MVP.
Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
The 2025 NFL MVP race could not have been tighter, with Matthew Stafford edging Drake Maye by just five total voting points.
Stafford received 24 first-place votes to Maye's 23, but the outcome was ultimately decided by the lone ballot that went elsewhere.
That vote was cast for Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert, despite him not being among the league's official MVP finalists.
Had that ballot been awarded to Maye, he would have either shared the MVP or overtaken Stafford outright.
A first-place MVP vote carries enormous weight, particularly in a race decided by such a narrow margin.
Maye's season placed him firmly in contention, which only intensified scrutiny of how the final voting unfolded.
While Stafford's victory followed the rules as written, attention quickly shifted toward the voting process rather than the performances themselves.
With the MVP decided by a single vote cast outside the finalist group, the 2025 outcome is set to remain one of the most discussed results in recent NFL history.
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