NFL Award Picks

This year's NFL Honors are the first under the AP's new voting system.  In the past, voters put down just one name--their winner for that particular award.  It led to some very anticlimactic vote totals when awards were unanimous.  This year, though, they've changed it to a voting system similar to what the BBWAA uses for MLB's postseason awards.  The voters select their top three or top five, with final point totals determining the winner.

We've already seen one of the benefits of the new system.  Because the voters had to rank their candidates and put down at least three names, the NFL was able to announce the finalists ahead of time.  I'm sure it's like in MLB where the top three finishers in the voting were named the "finalists," and whoever wins won't exactly be a surprise.  But it's nice to know who all of the top vote-getters were.

They're also showing the NFL Honors live this year.  Frankly, I never understood why this was taped ahead of time for so long (2021, of course, doesn't count).  Because there was absolutely no reason for it not to be!  And, this way, we won't get any of the award winners spoiled ahead of time.

In addition to the Hall of Fame announcement and all that other filler stuff they use to stretch it out into a two-hour broadcast, they present the AP's eight major awards, as well as the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year.  I'll get to Man of the Year at the end, but here's who I think wins each of the AP awards:

Assistant Coach of the Year: DeMeco Ryans, 49ers-Probably the easiest vote of them all.  That defense was the biggest reason why the 49ers reached the NFC Championship Game.  San Francisco led the NFL in virtually every defensive category.  Which is a big reason why Ryans is no longer the 49ers' defensive coordinator.  He's now Head Coach of the Texans.

Coach of the Year: Brian Daboll, Giants-Five great candidates, all of whom have a very solid case.  I think it comes down to a choice between Brian Daboll and Doug Pederson, though.  After the hot mess that was Urban Meyer's coaching tenure and back-to-back No. 1 overall picks, Pederson led the Jaguars to the AFC South title in his first season with Jacksonville.  However, I give the nod to the Giants' Brian Daboll.  Also in his first year, Daboll engineered quite a turnaround with the Giants, who snapped their streak of 10-loss seasons and returned to the playoffs for the first time in six years...as one of three playoff teams in the NFC East.  Not only that, he took an anemic offense and turned it into a strength.

Comeback Player of the Year: Christian McCaffrey, Panthers/49ers-Geno Smith was a regular starter for the first time in eight years and made his first Pro Bowl while leading the Seahawks to the playoffs.  Saquon Barkley returned to All-Pro form after missing the better part of two seasons with injuries.  But my call for Comeback Player of the Year is Christian McCaffrey.  After playing in a grand total of 10 games in 2020 and 2021 combined, McCaffrey played in all 17 this season, six for Carolina before a midseason trade to San Francisco, and 11 with the 49ers.  And he was once again the dual-threat that fantasy owners love.  He had over 1,000 rushing yards, caught 85 passes, and even threw for a 34-yard touchdown.

Defensive Rookie of the Year: Sauce Gardner, Jets-Aidan Hutchinson made a late run for it, but not enough to surpass season-long favorite Sauce Gardner.  He was the first rookie corner named First Team All-Pro in 40 years, and he led the NFL with 20 passes defended.  It was very reminiscent of a certain other Jets cornerback who'll also be taking the stage at the NFL Honors when they announce the Hall of Fame class.

Offensive Rookie of the Year: Brock Purdy, 49ers-From Mr. Irrelevant to potentially the Offensive Rookie of the Year.  This was a very weird season in that there wasn't the dynamic offensive rookie who made the immediate impact.  Which is how Purdy could very well sneak in and win it despite not making his first NFL start until Week 13 and only starting six games.  The 49ers went 6-0 in those games, and he threw for at least two touchdowns in all of them.

Defensive Player of the Year: Nick Bosa, 49ers-Bosa was the best player on San Francisco's outstanding defense this season.  He led the league with 18.5 sacks and also had 51 tackles, including 19 tackles for loss.  The fact that San Francisco had the league's No. 1 defense is an important thing here, too.  For me, that's what sets Bosa apart from Micah Parsons and Chris Jones (who I'm glad to see is a finalist...that guy is a beast!).

Offensive Player of the Year: Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs-It seems that Offensive Player of the Year and MVP are now treated as completely separate awards after seeing the same person win both so many times in the past.  Three of the four finalists are also up for MVP, so it's certainly possible we will see it again.  In fact, I think we will.  Because how can the Offensive Player of the Year not be Patrick Mahomes?  He had one of the best seasons of his career, setting an NFL record with more than 5,600 total yards and leading the league with 41 touchdown passes while leading Kansas City to another Super Bowl.

MVP: Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs-Jalen Hurts was the frontrunner for most of the season until missing two of the Eagles' final three games.  Although, the fact that they lost both actually enhances his MVP case in my opinion.  Unfortunately, his numbers pale in comparison to Mahomes, though.  Hurts was great.  So was Josh Allen.  So was Joe Burrow.  But none of them came anywhere near the production of Mahomes.  In 2018, he was both MVP and Offensive Player of the Year.  Four years later, he'll win both again.

Last but not least, we've got the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year.  Last year's winner was Andrew Whitworth, who fittingly played for both the Bengals and the Rams before retiring after Super Bowl LVI.  This award, of course, is unique in that it recognizes players as much for what they do off the field as what they do on it.  And, as usual, there are plenty of deserving candidates.  However, I'm going with...

Man of the Year: Dak Prescott, Cowboys-Dak's on-field exploits are well-documented.  He's much less heralded for what he's done off it.  Dak's foundation helped get the National Suicide Prevention hotline number changed to a three-digit number, making it easier for anyone to call.  He's donated more than $40,000 to childhood cancer research and is the co-chair of a childhood cancer gala in Dallas (that was started by Roger Staubach).  In addition to giving back in hurricane-affected areas of Louisiana and Texas, making grants to first responders and for research programs, and finding various ways to be hands-on in his community.  I could go on, but you get the point.  So many deserving candidates, but for me, Dak gets the nod.