New York – Shaun Alexander was getting tired of having golfing partner Marshall Faulk remind him who owned an Associated Press NFL most valuable player award. So Alexander went out and got himself one – in record-breaking style.
Alexander set an NFL mark with 28 touchdowns, led the league in rushing with 1,880 yards and ran away with the MVP voting Thursday. And with free agency on the horizon, the Seattle Seahawks running back could parlay his sensational year into unprecedented riches.
“Marsh and I go golfing and he will talk about MVPs and this and that as he drops another putt in,” Alexander said. “It is one of those things where I think it is more for the writers and media until after you retire. When you retire, that is when guys seem like they talk about it a little bit more.”
Alexander earned 19 votes from a nationwide panel of 50 sportswriters and broadcasters who cover the NFL. He ended the two-year reign of Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, who received 13 votes for second place.
Alexander is the first running back voted MVP since his golfing buddy Faulk in 2000. Trailing Alexander and Manning in the balloting were New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady with 10 votes, New York Giants running back Tiki Barber with six and Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer with two.
