No one knows for sure who will be the MVP of the upcoming Super Bowl yet, but betting markets and expert previews do point to a few likely names, mostly the starting quarterbacks and top playmakers from each team.

Quick Scoop: Who’s Most Likely?

The MVP is almost always a star from the winning team, and historically it skews heavily toward quarterbacks. Right now, odds and expert previews around Super Bowl 2026 focus on a small group of headliners rather than a single “locked‑in” favorite.

Top favorites from sportsbooks and previews

  • Sam Darnold (Seattle QB) – Listed with the shortest or near‑shortest MVP odds thanks to strong playoff performances and the usual QB bias.
  • Drake Maye (New England QB) – Very close in the odds, highlighted by analysts as a top MVP bet because New England’s path to winning likely runs through a big game from him.
  • Kenneth Walker III (Seattle RB) – A popular non‑QB pick; if he beats a strong Patriots run defense and puts up big rushing numbers, he’s seen as a real MVP candidate.
  • Jaxon Smith‑Njigba and other explosive playmakers – Receivers and multipurpose threats are mentioned as outside shots who could steal it with a monster game.

In one expert breakdown of Super Bowl MVP bets, Drake Maye and Kenneth Walker are singled out among “best bet” options, with some staff leaning slightly toward Maye if the Patriots win and toward Seattle’s QB or RB if the Seahawks win.

Why it’s impossible to say for sure

  • The award is voted on after the game by a media panel plus a fan component, with about 80% of the weight coming from the professional panel.
  • Voting starts in the fourth quarter, which builds in a “what did I just see?” recency bias toward late big plays.
  • A defensive or special‑teams player can win if they have a game‑changing performance (multiple sacks, picks, or TDs), which keeps long‑shot names in the mix.

So, if you’re asking “who will be the MVP,” the honest answer is: it will almost certainly be a star from the winning team, most likely a quarterback such as Sam Darnold or Drake Maye, but any key playmaker who explodes on game day could end up with the trophy.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.