Joseph Addai, BenJarvus Green-Ellis, Chris Ivory, John Kuhn and Laurence Maroney.

The names above are not exactly a who's who of NFL running backs. Yet in Week Four, these were the five leading running backs for the top five players on the MVP Meter, and none of them rushed for more than 76 yards. Quarterbacks are going at it on their own now, without much running assistance required.

In our rankings of who will be crowned the Most Valuable Player, these quarterbacks seem to have elevated themselves above the rest because they are carrying so much of the load for their teams. Defenses know they're going to throw and are still struggling to stop them.

(Last week's ranking in parentheses)

1. Colts QB Peyton Manning (No. 1) — His team's defense can't stop anybody, and they've lost both AFC South games they've played. You'd be hard pressed to blame Manning though, as he ranks first in the league in QB rating, second in passing yards and has thrown 11 TDs to only one INT (a deflected pass off the hands of TE Brody Eldridge).

2. Patriots QB Tom Brady (No. 3) — Career win No. 100 was a sweet one for Brady, as he was able to watch his defense and special teams lead the Patriots to a big road victory on Monday night. Heading into his bye week, he's completed 69.7 percent of his passes (third in the league) for the team leading the league in points per game.

3. Saints QB Drew Brees (No. 2) — Team struggles, not a dip in individual performance, are the reason for Brees' drop on the Meter. All four games the Saints have played this year have been sluggish affairs, with the offense yet to find the groove they had in 2009 on their way to a championship. Injuries to RBs Pierre Thomas and Reggie Bush don't help, but the Meter expects more than 19.8 points a game out of the New Orleans offense.