Alright... this isn't just about one MVP award. I'm talking about every MVP award in team sports. Ever since Dirk Nowitzki won the NBA's MVP award, I've been wondering if MVP actually meant Most Valuable Player. Actually I've been wondering about this for a while, but I'm just now deciding to talk about it.

It's an interesting question. I've been hearing multiple definitions for what MVP means. In some cases, sports analysts will say that the award should go to the best player on the best team (Dirk Nowitzki this season), however if that's the case how can Major League Baseball justify giving the award to Ryan Howard last season? The Phillies were nowhere near the playoffs, and if the previous definition (Best player on the Best team) is true then why wasn't the award given to someone from the Mets, Dodgers, Cardinals, or Padres? I'm not saying anythng against Ryan Howard, because he had an amazing season, but isn't that contradictive?

In the NFL, there's no question that LDT deserved the MVP this year. No one had the type of impact that he had, but what about the previous season? Shaun Alexander had an amazing season (winning the rushing title, as well as setting the record for TDs in a single season), but was he more valuable to the Seahawks than Tiki Barber was to the Giants? Granted there is bias in my bringing Barber up in this discussion, but Tiki Barber set the Giants single season rushing record and single-handedly carried the Giants to the NFC East Championship when Eli Manning was struggling. Other teams knew that he was coming and yet they still could not stop him.

The question, once again, is What does MVP mean? Is it given to the player with the best stats on the season? Is it given to the best player on the best team? Or is it given to the person that is by far the Most Valuable Player to their respective team? I want to know.