The National Football League will recognize its best players, performances and plays from the 2013 season at a two-hour prime-time awards special -- "3rd Annual NFL Honors" -- to air nationally on Saturday, Feb. 1, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on FOX.
For the first time, the Pro Football Hall of Fame's newest class of enshrinees will be introduced during the show with the Class of 2014 appearing on the stage of the renowned Radio City Music Hall in New York.
Award-winning actor and New York native Alec Baldwin will return to the stage as the host of the show the evening before the two top teams kick off in Super Bowl XLVIII.
Joined by current and former players, The Associated Press will announce their annual accolades in an awards show format. "NFL Honors," which debuted two years ago in Indianapolis, is now an annual event from the Super Bowl city. The winners will be on hand to accept their awards.
Kicking off the night will be "Super Bowl Saturday Night presented by XFINITY," a red carpet show on NFL Network from 7-8 p.m. ET featuring the sights and sounds of Super Bowl week and many of the stars who will be celebrating the best of the NFL later that evening.
Among the awards that will be announced will be the prestigious Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award, which recognizes a player's off-the-field community service as well as his playing excellence. In addition, Indianapolis Colts linebacker Robert Mathis will be recognized as the winner of the inaugural Deacon Jones Award, given annually to the NFL leader in quarterback sacks. The Deacon Jones Award was created this year to permanently honor the legacy of Deacon Jones, who died on June 3, 2013, at the age of 74.
Seven of the awards will be from The AP. Those awards, which include AP Most Valuable Player and AP Coach of the Year, are voted on at the end of the regular NFL season by a nationwide media panel of 50 people who regularly cover the league. The ballots are tabulated solely by The AP.
The AP is providing the list of honorees to the NFL for the program, and any advertising or sponsorship on the broadcast is being handled separately and independently by the NFL. For the first time ever, Microsoft Surface tablets will replace the award envelopes this year at the NFL Honors. The full list of awards that will be presented will be:
»AP Most Valuable Player presented by Papa John's
»Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year
»AP Coach of the Year presented by Lenovo
»AP Comeback Player of the Year presented by Castrol EDGE
»AP Offensive Player of the Year presented by XBOX One
»AP Defensive Player of the Year presented by Surface
»AP Offensive Rookie of the Year presented by Pepsi NEXT
»AP Defensive Rookie of the Year presented by Pepsi NEXT
»Pepsi NEXT Rookie of the Year
»FedEx Air & Ground Players of the Year
»GMC Never Say Never Moment of the Year
»Bridgestone Performance Play of the Year
»NFL.com Fantasy Player of the Year presented by SAP
»Greatness on the Road Award presented by Courtyard
»Don Shula NFL High School Coach of the Year Award
»Salute To Service Award Presented by USAA
»Deacon Jones Award
Top-Tier Sponsors of "3rd Annual NFL Honors" include Bridgestone, Castrol EDGE, GMC, Lenovo, Xbox One, Surface, Papa John's, Pepsi NEXT, SAP, XFINITY. Associate Sponsors include FedEx, Courtyard and USAA.
"3rd Annual NFL Honors" is an NFL Network production in association with Dick Clark Productions. For more information about "NFL Honors," fans may visit http://www.nfl.com/honors and follow the #NFLHonors conversation on Twitter.
