When the NFL awards the MVP award, it's not really the most valuable player per se but the "dude with the good stats and wins".
I argue that Matt Ryan has been the most valuable player to his franchise. The turnaround that has occurred, at least for this season, overshadows the excellent but albeit expected play from Manning. Ryan has made A LOT of people forget about the sorry state of affairs after Vick. Everyone was predicting that the Falcons would finish last. Somehow they ended the season in contention with a legitimate franchise QB. He's bought respect back to the Falcons.
Of course that's not the way the MVP is awarded, so I guess my points are moot.