2018 NFL Honors: Quick Takeaways On Each Award Winner

The 2018 NFL Honors are official and the debates have already started. Fans almost never agree on who should or should’ve won each award.

One thing is clear, most of the honorees likely deserved it in some fashion. The question is did the voters end up missing somebody who probably deserved it more? That is what this rundown of each major award will assess. Not just whether the recipient was worthy but also whether a better choice may have existed. At first glance, it feels like this year was without any major controversy. Well almost anyway.

MVP:  Tom Brady

It’s hard not to feel like this award should’ve gone to Carson Wentz given the ridiculous season he was having. Unfortunately his untimely injury and the fact Philadelphia kept winning without him pretty much paved the way for Brady to claim his third MVP. He deserves it. At 40-years old he carried the New England Patriots back to another Super Bowl.

Coach of the Year:  Sean McVay

Doug Pederson had plenty of argument for this award, especially given how the Eagles played after Wentz went down. That said most people expected Philly to be good. Not a single person saw what the Los Angeles Rams did this year coming. All of that is thanks to the efforts of Sean McVay who turned Jared Goff into a Pro Bowler and took them from 4-12 to 10-6 in a season.

Assistant Coach of the Year:  Pat Shurmur

There was never much debate on this one. What Shurmur was able to do with the Minnesota Vikings offense was nothing short of remarkable. He lost both his starting quarterback and starting running back early in the season. Did that stop him? Nope. The Vikings offense still somehow finished 10th in points scored and Case Keenum got them to the NFC championship.

Comeback Player of the Year:  Keenan Allen

It’s not hard to see why Allen was the choice. Between 2015 and 2016, he played just nine games due to injury problems. People wondered if his body was breaking down on him. Seems he wasn’t ready to accept that. Allen roared back in 2017 with 1,393 yards and six touchdowns. The best season of his career and timely given his contract situation.

Defensive Player of the Year:  Aaron Donald

Aaron Donald is a beast and one of the best defensive tackles in football, if not the best. Still, it feels like his name earned him the honor more than his actual season. In fairness 11 sacks and five forced fumbles is great, but it really feels like Calais Campbell was robbed this year. He led his team to the AFC championship with 14.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, and a defensive touchdown.

Offensive Player of the Year:  Todd Gurley

No debate here. Gurley has consideration for the MVP voting but naturally, that’s the QB award these days. That said the Rams running back reminded everybody why he was so highly-touted coming out of Georgia. In total, he amassed 2,093 yards from scrimmage and scored a whopping 19 touchdowns. At times it just looked unfair for defenses with him on the field.

Defensive Rookie of the Year:  Marshon Lattimore

The New Orleans Saints defense was among the worst in the NFL last season. One year later they ranked as one of the best and certainly the most improved. The biggest reason for that was the arrival of Lattimore in their secondary. His shutdown ability as a corner was something they sorely lacked. The five interceptions he provided also didn’t hurt.

Next: 2018 NFL Mock Draft: Kirk Cousins Creates Quarterback Scramble

Offensive Rookie of the Year:  Alvin Kamara

This was an enormously tight race between Kamara and fellow rookie back Kareem Hunt. It came down to simple math. Hunt had over 1,700 total yards and 11 touchdowns while touching the ball 325 times. Kamara had over 1,500 total yards and 13 touchdowns despite only touching it 201 times. The bang-for-buck productivity was what got him over the hump.