There are mileposts along this road to the end of the football season, at which point an MVP will be chosen. And while the award will be based on a 16-game body of work, those who vote are undoubtedly tracking league and MVP developments week to week.

This week, in which the man who's occupied the top spot in the MVP Watch since the preseason plays a critical division game against the last unbeaten team in the league, is one such milepost. It's the kind of week that could create a seismic shift in the race for the MVP award, or reaffirm everything you already thought you knew about it.

Chiefs-Broncos on Sunday night. Panthers-Patriots on Monday night. Saints-49ers on Sunday afternoon. These are the games that make and break MVP candidates, and the Watch can't wait to ... well, watch them all. Meantime, this week's list loses a couple of regulars and adds a couple of defensive players, which is always fun, though not totally realistic. But the Watch is all about the fun, as you know. Or surmised. Or wished were otherwise.