2025 NFL Awards

While most of the attention has gone to the Hall of Fame, let's not forget that the NFL Honors also includes the announcement of the league's annual awards.  It's been a few years since they moved it to Thursday night, which I have to say is much better.  Not only is Thursday Night Football an established part of the weekly schedule, doing the awards on Thursday gives them a little more of showcase.  On Saturday night, they were overshadowed by the game.

Anyway, this year, I'm especially interested to see how two of the races are decided.  MVP is most likely down to either Matthew Stafford or Drake Maye, while this is one of the most competitive Coach of the Year fields I've seen in quite some time.  While I think there's a clear winner, you could make a legitimate argument for all five finalists.

Speaking of all five finalists, I love that the NFL and AP have followed Baseball's lead by announcing them in advance.  Granted, it's mainly to invite them to the NFL Honors and make sure they're present to accept their award (unless, of course, they're playing in the Super Bowl).  But it also gives everyone a heads up who else is in the running, even if the winner is obvious.  And it really is nice to know who finished in the top five of the voting.

I've also noticed a significant change over the past few years.  It used to be taken for granted that the MVP and Offensive Player of the Year would be the same person.  That hasn't happened in quite a while.  They're two separate awards and they're treated as such.  The Offensive Player of the Year isn't necessarily the MVP and vice versa.  That's not saying they can't be the same player, of course, but you can be one and not the other.  As we've started to see regularly in recent years.  Which is a good thing.

MVP: Matthew Stafford, Rams-By December, Stafford and Drake Maye had separated themselves as the clear leaders in the MVP conversation.  I think Stafford has the slight edge, though.  The Rams had the best offense in football, and their 37-year-old quarterback had the best season of his 17-year career.  Stafford threw for 4,707 yards and 46 touchdowns (to just eight interceptions) and had a career-high 109.2 passer rating.  Maye had a higher QB rating, but Stafford was better in every other category.

Defensive Player: Myles Garrett, Browns-This is probably the easiest one of them all.  Garrett set an NFL record with 23 sacks playing for a bad Browns team.  Sometimes a performer can stand out on a bad team.  This is one of those years.  Garrett's record cannot be ignored.  The vote could be unanimous.

Offensive Player: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seahawks-What a year for JSN!  He was arguably the best receiver in the game this season and a big reason for the Seahawks' success.  Smith-Njigba had nearly 1,800 receiving yards on 119 catches, 10 of which went for touchdowns.  He obviously clicked with Sam Darnold!  Just like Saquon last year, Seattle is nowhere near as good this season without the type of year Jaxon Smith-Njigba had.

Offensive Rookie: Tetairoa McMillan, Panthers-It's kind of strange how there wasn't really a standout rookie anywhere on the offensive side of the ball this season.  No clear-cut Offensive Rookie of the Year.  The field is so weak that Jaxson Dart is a finalist!  I'm going with Carolina's Tetairoa McMillan simply because I think he had the most impact on his team's success.

Defensive Rookie: Nick Emmanwori, Seahawks-Unlike on offense, there are worthwhile choices for Defensive Rookie of the Year.  For a similar reason as McMillan, my choice is Seattle's Nick Emmanwori.  The Seahawks' offense got a lot of the credit (and deservedly so), but let's not forget how good their defense was.  It was no Legion of Boom, but it's a big a reason as any why Seattle is playing on Sunday.  Emmawori's presence in the secondary, especially late in the season, was a huge reason for that success.

Comeback Player: Christian McCaffrey, 49ers-McCaffrey missed A LOT of time in 2024.  First it was an ACL, then his season ended in Week 13.  In 2025, not only did he stay healthy, he played so well that he's a finalist for three different awards.  He won't win MVP or Offensive Player of the Year, but CMC should be a lock for Comeback Player.  The 49ers' success really hinges on his ability to stay healthy, and he showed why this year with an MVP-caliber season.

Coach: Mike Vrabel, Patriots-As deserving as the other candidates are, Vrabel is the clear choice for Coach of the Year.  He's the guy Kraft really wanted when Belichick retired, and we all saw why this season.  The Titans must feel like fools for letting him go!  But Tennessee's loss was New England's gain.  Vrabel led a worst-to-first turnaround that included a 10-game winning streak and an undefeated road record.  Is it any surprise then that the Patriots are back in the Super Bowl?

Assistant Coach: Klint Kubiak, Seahawks-After the Super Bowl, he'll go from Seahawks Offensive Coordinator to Raiders Head Coach.  That offense is one of the biggest reasons why Seattle had the best record in football and won the NFC title.  Sam Darnold proved last season in Minnesota wasn't a fluke and JSN had a career year.  The Seahawks were aggressive on offense, too, and more often than not, it paid off.  That two-point conversion in overtime against the Rams helped propel them to the Super Bowl.

Finally, we have the NFL's biggest honor.  This is always the toughest one because it isn't based on on-field performance.  That's important, but not as important as the impact on the community.  It's also the only award where all 32 teams designate their own nominee, and all of those nominees are on stage for the announcement.  As always, all 32 candidates are worthy of the honor.

Man of the Year: Dion Dawkins, Bills-Offensive linemen typically don't get the accolades.  They're the blue-collar, down-in-the-trenches guys who work hard.  Kind of like the City of Buffalo.  Which is why Dion Dawkins fits in so well with Western New Yorkers.  He's one of them.  Dawkins is so beloved by his team and its city that he's the Bills' nominee for the fourth straight year, and he's given his heart and soul to the people of Buffalo, both on the field and off.  Dawkins went out on a limb for his fellow offensive linemen, too.  He was a driving force in the creation of the "Protector of the Year" Award, ensuring that offensive linemen do get those deserved accolades.