NFL Awards 2026 Finalists for MVP, Offensive and Defensive POY, ROY, More Announced

As the NFL playoffs near their conclusion with this weekend's conference championship games, the league revealed who will be in the running to take home some hardware this year.

The NFL unveiled its full list of finalists for this season's individual awards in a series of social media posts on Thursday morning. Most notably, the MVP race will come down to Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen, Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence, New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey and Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford.

The full slate of awards finalists for the 2025 season is as follows:

The winners for this season's awards will be announced during the annual NFL Honors ceremony on Feb. 5, leading up to Super Bowl LX on Feb. 8. Per the Associated Press, a nationwide panel of 50 media members who regularly cover the league submitted their votes for the awards before the start of the playoffs.

Allen is back in the running for NFL MVP after taking home the award in 2024. He continued his stellar play this year while leading the Bills to a seventh straight playoff appearance, throwing for 3,668 yards, 25 touchdowns and 10 interceptions while also adding 14 rushing touchdowns.

Despite Allen's strong season, he will have some stiff competition for his second straight MVP award, most notably from Stafford. The 17-year veteran was named first-team All-Pro for the first time in his career after leading the NFL with 4,707 passing yards and 46 touchdowns while throwing just eight interceptions.

Maye, who is also in the running for Offensive Player of the Year, enjoyed a breakout sophomore season while leading the Patriots to an AFC East title. The second-year signal-caller threw for 4,394 yards, 31 touchdowns and eight interceptions while leading the league in passer rating (113.5) and completion percentage (72 percent).

Lawrence also secured a finalist spot for Comeback Player of the Year after leading the Jags to an AFC South title just a year after he was limited to 10 games due to shoulder and head injuries. The 26-year-old bounced back in a big way, throwing for 4,007 yards, 29 touchdowns and 12 interceptions while adding nine rushing scores.

McCaffrey is the only non-quarterback to be an MVP finalist, and rightfully so. The do-it-all speedster is also in the running for Offensive Player of the Year and Comeback Player of the Year after rushing for 1,202 yards and 10 touchdowns while registering 102 catches for 924 yards and seven more scores. He helped carry an injury-depleted 49ers team to a 12-win season and a spot in the playoffs.

Stafford and Maye are the only MVP finalists still alive in the postseason, as the Rams will face the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship and the Patriots will face the Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship. Perhaps the two of them will end up meeting in Super Bowl LX for the chance to hoist the Lombardi Trophy.