5- Blaine Gabbert, 49ers (last week: NR)
How clutch was Blaine Gabbert on Sunday, on the road, in Chicago, a place where the 49ers hadn’t won a regular season game since 1974? Try a game tying 4th quarter touchdown run from 44-yards out, followed by a 71-yard walk off touchdown pass to Torrey Smith, giving the 49ers their first road win on the season.
4- Ryan Fitzpatrick, Jets (last week: 4)
In the battle for New York, Ryan Fitzpatrick led an improbable comeback for the Jets, bringing them back from 10 points down with under five minutes left to play. He threw the game tying touchdown with 32 seconds left to play, then drove the Jets downfield in overtime for what would become the eventual game winning field goal.
The Jets are in the thick of a playoff hunt thanks in part, to Fitzpatrick’s steady play.
3- Marcus Mariota, Titans (last week: NR)
Mariota had a heck of a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, completing 20 of 29 passes for 268 yards and three scores, then for good measure, added a 100-yard rushing performance to go along with a touchdown run of 87 yards.
2- Aaron Rodgers, Packers (last week: NR)
Rodgers and the Packers looked to be on the road for their third straight loss after trailing 23-14 with seven minutes left to play. Instead, Rodgers drove the Packers methodically downfield, then scrambled from 17-yards out to pull Green Bay within two points.
With 23 seconds left to play and the ball at their own 21-yard line with no timeouts, the game looked to be all but over, but apparently Rodgers didn’t get that memo. A face mask penalty on Detroit led to one more play, which turned into the longest Hail Mary touchdown in NFL history, a 61-yard bomb that won it for the Packers.
1- Cam Newton, Panthers (last week: NR)
With four games left to play, it seems Cam Newton has locked up the MVP award for the year. He’s been nothing but amazing this season, and on Sunday, he showed everybody why. The Panthers and Saints traded scores all day long, but it was Cam who made rags out of the New Orleans secondary, tossing for 5 touchdowns, including the game winner with 1:05 left to play.
Cam takes the No. 1 spot for the Otto’s in Week 13.
