And The Award Should Go To... NFL's Most Deserving Players for Year-End Honors

The AP already took the fun out of one of these awards. Matt Ryan has been chosen as the NFL's Offensive Rookie of the Year, and no one can argue how deserving he was of the honors.

Doing what he did with the Atlanta Falcons after being criticized before ever taking a snap is quite the accomplishment. Ryan's contract was a cause for criticism before the season started, and he's made his worthiness clear ever since Week One.

It would've been fun to try and make a case for Matt Forte, or Chris Johnson—but there's no reason to be irresponsible.

With that said, the NFL race was still a tight one for a lot of awards this year. The award for MVP has been a cause for debate throughout the final quarter of the season. The race for Coach of the Year has become immensely complicated as well.

But I have my favorites, and no one can change my mind.

MVP: QB Drew Brees, NO

Don't you dare scoff. Don't you dare!

There's one thing that aggravated me to no end this season, and that's people trying to correlate Brees' worthiness for MVP with the New Orleans Saints' record. Are you serious? Is he to blame for the rest of the team not being able to keep up.

Ask yourselves this: Where would New Orleans have been without Drew Brees?

With 5,069 yards on the year, the fact that Brees didn't take the single-season passing record is a testament to the direction of the entire season. Brees only needed 15 yards to make the record his, and Lance Moore let him down.

There's only but so much Brees could have done by himself, but he's the league's Most Valuable Player without a doubt.

I won't be angry if... Philip Rivers, SD or Chad Pennington, MIA receive the award. Both quarterbacks were the top rated men in the NFL, and led their teams to surprising playoff berths. In fact, Chad Pennington receiving the award would go a long way towards restoring America's faith in respect for the good guy.

It better not go to... Peyton Manning. We all know the story. The Colts went on a winning streak that they've ridden directly into the playoffs. It doesn't matter. Manning wasn't the best quarterback in 2008 and doesn't deserve the award this year.

Comeback Player of the Year: QB Donovan McNabb, PHI

Let's not kid ourselves. Donovan McNabb won Comeback Player of the Year twice in one season.

McNabb looked to be the runaway favorite for the award during the first quarter of the season. But as Philadelphia fell behind in the NFC East, McNabb started losing momentum.

And then came the whole "I didn't know a game could end in a tie" debacle after McNabb's Eagles failed to edge out the reeling Cincinnati Bengals. As if things couldn't be worse, McNabb was benched in a game against the Ravens, and it looked like his season was over.

How did McNabb respond to adversity? He led the Eagles to an unlikely playoff berth after his team destroyed the Cowboys in a "win and your in" situation during Week 17.

I won't be angry if... Chad Pennington receives this award, too. Being benched halfway through 2007 and doing what he's done in Miami makes him more than worthy.

It better not go to... Kerry Collins. Sure, he led the Tennessee Titans to the AFC's best record, but he didn't do it alone. The Titans' success can be credited to their defense and the running game more than it could be to Collins. He did play well, but Comeback Player of the Year-well? Probably not.

Offensive Player of the Year: QB Philip Rivers, SD

Let's be clear for a moment. Philip Rivers was the San Diego Chargers' offense. It took people a while to really respect it.

The Chargers were supposed to be identified by LaDainian Tomlinson. But as LT wavered in 2008, Rivers quietly kept the Chargers in contention.

With 34 touchdowns on the season and only one 1,000-yard receiver in Vincent Jackson, it's clear that Rivers flourished as the new focal point of the Chargers' offense.

I won't be angry if... Adrian Peterson receives the award. In fact, if I'm being absolutely honest, he can receive the award for the same exact reasons Rivers should. His 1,300-yard rookie season was a magnificent start—but responding with over 1,700 yards in 2008.

It better not go to... Jay Cutler. I like him as a quarterback, and don't think he's a punk. But with as effective as he was as the Broncos' signal-caller in 2008, he was also part of the reason they missed the playoffs. It didn't help that Denver's running game finally lost its magic, or that the defense was terrible.

Defensive Player of the Year: DE DeMarcus Ware, DAL

Michael Strahan's single-season sack record nearly fell to DeMarcus Ware as he was effortlessly racking up sacks by the bunches for the Cowboys.

In 16 games, Ware only finished twice without recording a sack. More importantly, it's the situations when Ware pops up with a sack that's most important.

He's not the pass-rusher that would only earn his bones when the Cowboys were comfortably ahead. Of his 20 sacks, 6 of them came during the fourth quarter when games needed to be put away.

I won't be angry if... James Harrison is recognized for the award. Being the best player on the NFL's best defense definitely makes him worthy of the award. He's the game-changing presence in Pittsburgh's defense.

It better not go to... Albert Haynesworth. He was an MVP favorite for most of the season, but the reality of his 2008 year revolves around overrated. As the season went on it became more and more clear that he was losing wind.

Defensive Rookie of the Year: LB/DE Vernon Gholston, NYJ

The sixth-overall draft pick dominated all season long, showing up in big games as an impressive forc...

...I'm just kidding. He sucked.

The Real Defensive Rookie of the Year: LB Jerod Mayo, NE

I'll just go right ahead and quote myself:

"

Jerod Mayo is the clear favorite for this award, but I'll be honest with you—I don't like it. He's here because there haven't been many rookies on defense that have stepped away from the pack.

Mayo will become a very good player. He's learning in the right system, and is surrounded by some of the best veteran linebackers to ever play the game. But as for his rookie campaign, he's simply the best in a mediocre crowd...

...Maybe if Keith Rivers wasn't injured this season it'd be a completely different story.

"

And so it remains the same. It's not even fun to try and make an argument for anyone else. It's why I needed to make the Gholston joke.

Coach of the Year: Tony Sparano, MIA and Mike Smith, ATL

There are co-awards every now and then, and I really can't think of a situation where it's more appropriate than this season.

Both Sparano and Smith completed unexpected turnarounds of their organizations with new personnel.

The Dolphins and the Falcons fell on hard times in 2007 and looked to be clubs with an arduous re-building process ahead of them.

So much for that analysis, huh? Both clubs are playoff teams, and strong ones at that. Usually fans can tell when a team sneaks into the playoffs and will likely be one-and-done.

That's not the case with Atlanta or Miami. Both teams look like legitimate threats to knock off a contender or two.

I won't be angry if... Bill Belichick is given the award. His Patriots will be the center of conversation for the next few weeks as analysts discuss how fair the playoff system is. Without a franchise player to truly lean on, the Patriots finished the season 11-5, and have an empty locker room to show for it.

It better not go to... Eric Mangini. Ha! Looks like I have a few more jokes left on page three.

But seriously, the front-running coaches for the award all deserve the consideration. Jeff Fisher is likely going to take it home, and he will certainly be worthy of the recognition.

His late-game challenge in Detroit on Thanksgiving was the kind of thing bullies are made of, but his long career and the things he did with the Titans in 2008 make him more than worthy of the honors.

Executive of the Year: GM Bill Parcells, MIA

He brought in an unknown to be the head coach, parted ways with Dolphins' favorites of yesteryear in Jason Taylor and Zach Thomas, and scooped up Chad Pennington after the Jets dumped him for a better option.

And his team crept to the top of the AFC East in a race no one expected them to be a part of.

At the start of 2008, the Dolphins were expected to be better than 2007, but they still had a long way to go. Buffalo led the division that the Jets would eventually hold until Week 16.

Now Miami is the only team in the playoffs from a division that wasn't decided until the end of Week 17—a division where the NFL's most recent dynasty is being forced to watch from home.

I won't be angry if... Thomas Dimitroff is acknowledged for the magic he worked in Atlanta.

Matt Ryan's rookie contract was supposed to be a disgrace to veteran players around the league upset with the kind of money he received. But none of that matters anymore.

Going out and signing Michael Turner for what many believe is the best free agent acquisition of the 2008 offseason should solidify his worthiness. But if more proof is required, look no further than the man he selected to coach his team.

Angel Navedo covers the New York Jets for Examiner.com. His work can also be found on NYJetsFan.com, where he is the Head Writer, and on MyGridironSpace.com—a premier social networking site built exclusively for NFL fans.

He is also a Senior Writer at the Bleacher Report, where he is one of the New York Jets Community Leaders.