NFL Honors 2019: Updated Predictions for Top Awards

Who are the best players in the NFL right now? That's a question you've probably debated with friends and family on multiple occasions. While there are no definitive answers to end the debates, the Associated Press strengthens players' cases on a yearly basis. Annual awards like NFL MVP, Offensive Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year eventually become part of the conversation.

The AP awards are now part of the NFL Honors, an awards ceremony held the night before the Super Bowl. The ceremony also includes non-AP awards like the Pepsi Rookie of the Year, the Walter Peyton Man of the Year, the Don Shula NFL High School Coach of the Year Award and the Salute to Service Award.

Of course, the AP awards are the ones that draw the most fan interest. These often spark their own debates (was Tom Brady really more valuable than Todd Gurley in 2017?) that can last throughout the offseason.

Which players will win this year's big awards? Read on for some predictions.

AP NFL Most Valuable Player

This is most likely Patrick Mahomes' award to lose. The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback had one of the best seasons in league history in 2018, passing for 5,087 yards with 50 touchdowns and just 12 interceptions. Making his campaign even more impressive is the fact this was just his first year as a full-time starter.

Even longtime NFL veterans recognize just how impressive Mahomes has been.

"Keep doing what you’re doing, and you’ll be one of the best that’s ever done it as well," Hall of Famer Michael Strahan told Mahomes during an appearance on Good Morning America. "Believe me. Believe me with that."

Mahomes hasn't just been statistically good. He's been unflappable in pressure situations and has made the kinds of athletic plays other quarterbacks wouldn't dream of.

While one could make a case for players like Ezekiel Elliott or Aaron Donald, the MVP award has essentially been a quarterback award for some time. Aridan Peterson, who won the award in 2012, is the only non-quarterback MVP of the last decade.

Prediction: Patrick Mahomes

AP Comeback Player of the Year

Eric Christian Smith/Associated Press

There are two primary candidates for the Comeback Player of the Year Award, and they both play in the AFC South. One is Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt, who played in just five games in 2017 before suffering a broken leg. The other is Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck, who missed the entire 2017 season while rehabbing from shoulder surgery.

The Comeback Player of the Year award is typically given to players who rebound from injury to perform at a high level—except for in 2013, when Philip Rivers won just for being bad the previous season.

Luck and Watt were both tremendous in 2018, and it wouldn't be an upset if either won. Watt finished the regular season with 61 tackles and 16.0 sacks. Luck passed for 4,593 yards with 39 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.

Both Luck and Watt helped lead their respective teams to the postseason after poor early starts.

The edge here has to go to Luck. While Deshaun Watson and the Texans offense may have been good enough to carry Houston to the postseason without Watt, there's essentially no way the Colts would have gotten in without Luck.

Prediction: Andrew Luck

AP Offensive Rookie of the Year

For Offensive Rookie of the Year, there are again two primary candidates. One is New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley. The other is Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield.

These two were the first players taken in the 2018 draft, and both had historic rookie seasons. Barkley produced 2,028 combined rushing and receiving yards with 15 total touchdowns. Mayfield passed for 3,725 and a rookie record 27 touchdowns in just 14 appearances.

Either one of the two would be deserving of the award, and Barkley and Mayfield are having a little fun with it. According to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com, the two have made a little wager on the award.

"It’s for a chain," Barkley said, per Cabot. "The loser’s got to get someone else a chain. We get to pick the chain and we get to have fun with it because obviously everyone’s talking about who’s going to win, and at the end of the day we’d love to see each other win, but we’d also love to see ourselves win too, but we made a little bet with it just to show how friendly we are that it’s bigger than just the award."

The edge here probably goes to Mayfield, but it isn't a big one. The rookie signal-caller not only performed on the field, but he put the entire franchise on his back and, in less than a season, changed the perception about the team's ability to compete.

Cleveland was still in the postseason picture in late December. New York was not.

Prediction: Baker Mayfield

Other Award Predictions

AP Offensive Player of the Year

Prediction: Drew Brees, QB, New Orleans Saints

AP Defensive Player of the Year

Prediction: Aaron Donald, DT, Los Angeles Rams

AP Defensive Rookie of the Year

Prediction: Derwin James, S, Los Angeles Chargers

AP Coach of the Year

Prediction: Sean McVay, Los Angeles Rams