We are just past the midseason mark of the NFL, and so we have decided to give our takes on who we believe will take home the leagues awards.
MVP(Most Valuable Player):
In 2018, young sensation Patrick Mahomes III will be the first person in NFL history to win the MVP unanimously. At the half way point, Mahomes is on pace to destroy records set by the likes of Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, and Tom Brady. If Mahomes stays at the same pace the rest of the year, he will throw for about 5700 yards. In comparison, the most thrown in a season so far is 5477 by Peyton Manning. In addition, Mahomes and the Chiefs are having great success. They are 8-1 as of now, and will probably finish in the 12-14 win range. This is more than enough for the new face of the NFL to take home an MVP in just his second year.
ROY(Rookie of the Year):
This race is, as of now, almost guaranteed to go to number two overall pick Saquon Barkley. In his rookie year, Barkley has tallied over 100 scrimmage yards in every game but one. He is almost single handedly fueling the Giants offense who lack a good quarterback and offensive line. He is on pace for nearly 2,000 scrimmage yards, something Le'veon Bell could not achieve last year. Barring some sort of extremely impressive end to the year from one of the rookie quarterbacks, or an injury, Barkley should walk home easily with this award.
OPOY(Offensive Player of the Year):
This award is essentially the best player who could not win MVP because of quarterbacks. Therefore, Rams dual-threat running back Todd Gurley II will get this award for the second year running. If he plays every game this year, he will break Hall of Famer Ladainian Tomlinson's record of 30 touchdowns scored in a year. If this alone is not enough, he also leads the league in rushing by a wide margin, and even is on pace for about 800 recieving yards. His accolades this year, along with the fact that his L.A. Rams are 8-1, and have almost no difficult games left, should ensure him as the leagues best offensive player this year.
DPOY(Defensive Player of the Year):
Right now, the leagues best defensive player is probably Rams DT Aaron Donald. However, as he won last year, and his production is not off the charts like his teammate Todd Gurley, I believe Vikings defensive end Danielle Hunter will win the award. Secretly, Hunter is leading the league with an astounding 11.5 sacks through 9 games. He has led a Vikings defensive line that missed star Everson Griffen and Brian Robison back into being feared and regarded among the leagues best. As the season progresses, I expect him to gain enough confidence and recognition to win the award.
Coach of the Year:
This award goes to Raiders coach Jon Gruden, successfully ruining the Raiders future. In all seriousness, Chiefs coach Andy Reid will win this award for the second time in his career(2002). Reid has received much praise about his bold move last year to trade up and select Texas tech QB Patrick Mahomes(see MVP section for details) when he already had a solid quarterback in Alex Smith. He then redshirted Mahomes, and traded Smith, who was coming off a career year. The results were marvelous, as Mahomes has turned out to be exactly what the Chiefs need, with much of these results coming from great coaching. This, along with the Chiefs record, should give Reid the award.
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