PFWA Awards 2016: Matt Ryan and Khalil Mack Headline List of Recipients

The Pro Football Writers of America announced its annual award winners Wednesday, including NFL Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year and MVP.

Oakland Raiders linebacker Khalil Mack won the PFWA Defensive Player of the Year after he put up 11 sacks. 

On the offensive side of the ball, Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan not only won Player of the Year honors but was also voted the 2016 NFL MVP. 

Ryan put up his finest season as a professional, recording a career-best 4,944 yards with 38 touchdowns and a career-low seven interceptions. 

Ryan was part of one of the most fearsome duos in the league with wide receiver Julio Jones, and the Falcons' high-powered offense is a main reason why the team is one win away from playing in Super Bowl LI:

On Friday, the PFWA announced Packers wide receiver Jordy Nelson as the Comeback Player of the Year and Falcons linebacker Vic Beasley as the Most Improved Player of the Year. 

The PFWA released its awards for the league's top rookies Tuesday, including its All-Rookie team, which was headlined by the young Dallas Cowboys duo that electrified the league this season:

Position	Player	Team
QB	Dak Prescott	Dallas Cowboys
RB	Ezekiel Elliott	Dallas Cowboys
RB	Jordan Howard	Chicago Bears
WR	Sterling Shepard	New York Giants
WR	Michael Thomas	New Orleans Saints
TE	Hunter Henry	Los Angeles Chargers
C	Cody Whitehair	Chicago Bears
G	Joe Thuney	New England Patriots
G	Laremy Tunsil	Miami Dolphins
T	Jack Conklin	Tennessee Titans
T	Taylor Decker	Detroit Lions
DL	Joey Bosa	Los Angeles Chargers
DL	DeForest Buckner	San Francisco 49ers
DL	Chris Jones	Kansas City Chiefs
DL	Yannick Ngakoue	Jacksonville Jaguars
LB	Jatavis Brown	Los Angeles Chargers
LB	Leonard Floyd	Chicago Bears
LB	Deion Jones	Atlanta Falcons
CB	Vernon Hargreaves III	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
CB	Jalen Ramsey	Jacksonville Jaguars
S	Karl Joseph	Oakland Raiders
S	Keanu Neal	Atlanta Falcons
PK	Wil Lutz	New Orleans Saints
P	Riley Dixon	Denver Broncos
KR	Tyreek Hill	Kansas City Chiefs
PR	Tyreek Hill	Kansas City Chiefs
ST	Tyreek Hill	Kansas City Chiefs

Running back Ezekiel Elliott burst on to the scene to take Rookie of the Year and Offensive Rookie of the Year honors in 2016 as one-half of the young Cowboys' duo alongside quarterback Dak Prescott. 

The Ohio State alumnus led the league with 1,631 rushing yards and 108.7 yards per game. He added 15 touchdowns on the ground, as he was almost untouchable at times behind a stellar Dallas offensive line. 

Playing under the pressure of taking over for veteran quarterback Tony Romo, Prescott passed for 3,667 yards with 23 touchdowns and just four interceptions. 

He had a quarterback rating of over 100 in 12 of his 16 games, and although he and the Cowboys fell short in the divisional round against the Green Bay Packers, he won the respect of opposing passer Aaron Rodgers, per Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News:

While his team didn't have a successful season, Los Angeles Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa won the PFWA's Defensive Rookie of the Year award despite missing the first four games of the season. 

In just 12 games, Bosa racked up 10.5 sacks and 41 total tackles as he quickly developed into a premier pass-rusher. He was the lone bright spot of a Chargers defense that allowed the fourth-most points in the NFL. 

But for a franchise that is looking to start fresh in Los Angeles, the Chargers at least have a future star in Bosa. 

Stats courtesy of Pro-Football-Reference.com.