Before the New England Patriots and Los Angeles Rams face off in the 53rd annual Super Bowl, the National Football League continues their tradition of honoring the best players, performances and plays of the 2018 season in the NFL Honors Award ceremony on Saturday at 9:00 p.m.
The award ceremony, hosted this year at Atlanta’s Fox Theatre, honors players on and off the field. The fan favorites include Most Valuable Player, Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, Rookie of the Year, Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year, Coach of the Year, Comeback Player of the Year, and the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year.
Most have narrowed down the MVP race to New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, while others are pulling for Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes. According to an anonymous panel of media members, including a dozen general managers, “Brees is the best quarterback right now, and his hard work has showed.” Others feel Brees should receive the award as a sentimental honor to the 39-year-old veteran, who may never have a shot at such a high honor again.
Others feel Patrick Mahomes’s season should not go unnoticed. “He led the NFL in passing yards while averaging a healthy 8.8 yards per attempt, and his 50 TD passes are 11 more than anyone else,” said a member of the panel.
Analysts from NFL Network predict that Indianapolis Colts coach Frank Reich will receive the Coach of the Year award . “He turned the team around, and demonstrated a lot of leadership after they had a terrible start,” said one analyst. “Reich won his scheme more than any coach in the league.” Other top contenders for the award include Los Angeles Chargers coach Anthony Lynn, Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy, and Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid.
Additional predictions from NFL Network include the following;
Offensive Player of the Year: Drew Brees (Saints), Patrick Mahomes (Chiefs)
Defensive Player of the Year: Aaron Donald (Rams)
Offensive Rookie of the Year: Saquon Barkley (Giants), Baker Mayfield (Browns)
Defensive Rookie of the Year: Darius Leonard (Colts), Derwin James (Chargers)
Comeback Player of the Year: Andrew Luck (Colts), Adrian Peterson (Redskins), J.J. Watt (Texans)
Tune in Saturday on the CBS Network at 9 pm EST for the Eighth Annual NFL Honors Award ceremony.
Meagan Gonzalez can be reached at meagan.gonzalez@student.shu.edu or on Twitter @meagangonzalezz
