With the 2022 NFL season just around the corner, NFL.com's analysts predict who they think will win some of the league's most prestigious individual awards, specifically:
Participating analysts: Judy Battista, Jeremy Bergman, Ali Bhanpuri, Tom Blair, Brooke Cersosimo, Jeffri Chadiha, Eric Edholm, Gennaro Filice, Marcas Grant, DeAngelo Hall, Dan Hanzus, Steve Mariucci, Dan Parr, Kevin Patra, Adam Rank, Chad Reuter, Gregg Rosenthal, Marc Ross, Marc Sessler, Nick Shook, Matt "Money" Smith, LaDainian Tomlinson, Jim Trotter, Kurt Warner, Lance Zierlein.
NOTE: All betting lines -- listed alongside each player's name -- are courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook and are current as of Noon ET on Wednesday, Aug. 31.
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
(12 votes: Battista, Chadiha, Filice, Grant, Hall, Mariucci, Parr, Rank, Shook, Smith, Tomlinson, Zierlein.)
2) Justin Herbert (+900) | 6 votes: Blair, Edholm, Hanzus, Patra, Sessler, Trotter.
T-3) Joe Burrow ( +1300) | 2 votes: Bergman, Warner.
T-3) Patrick Mahomes ( +800) | 2 votes: Rosenthal, Ross.
T-5) Derek Carr (+3000) | 1 vote: Bhanpuri.
T-5) Lamar Jackson (+2000) | 1 vote: Cersosimo.
T-5) Aaron Rodgers (+1000) | 1 vote: Reuter.
Why Judy Battista chose Josh Allen: He's coming off a 4,407-yard, 36-touchdown passing season, was the Bills' second-leading rusher (763 yards) and entered a different orbit during the playoffs, shredding a Bill Belichick defense and going toe-to-toe with Patrick Mahomes in a postseason epic. With even more weapons at his disposal (the emergent Isaiah McKenzie, for one), Allen is poised to get the only things that have eluded him so far in his career: an MVP trophy and a Super Bowl ring.
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
(7 votes: Battista, Bhanpuri, Cersosimo, Hall, Patra, Sessler, Trotter.)
2) Jonathan Taylor | 4 votes: Reuter, Shook, Tomlinson, Zierlein.
3) Ja'Marr Chase | 3 votes: Bergman, Blair, Grant.
T-4) Davante Adams | 2 votes: Chadiha, Edholm.
T-4) Justin Herbert | 2 votes: Rank, Smith.
T-4) Lamar Jackson | 2 votes: Filice, Ross.
T-7) Derrick Henry | 1 vote: Warner.
T-7) Jalen Hurts | 1 vote: Parr.
T-7) Christian McCaffrey | 1 vote: Hanzus.
T-7) Deebo Samuel | 1 vote: Mariucci.
Why DeAngelo Hall chose Justin Jefferson: I knew the LSU product was a special talent when he came into the league in 2020, but I'm not sure anyone other than Jefferson himself envisioned this degree of dominance this early. He's re-writing the record books with the most receiving yards in a player's first two seasons (3,016) in NFL history. It's also the most receiving yards league-wide since 2020 -- yes, more than the robust totals accumulated by Davante Adams (2,927) and Cooper Kupp (2,921). The third-year pro said back in July that he's going to be the NFL's best receiver by the end of the 2022 season. I believe that will be true.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
(10 votes: Battista, Bhanpuri, Chadiha, Mariucci, Rank, Rosenthal, Ross, Sessler, Tomlinson, Warner.)
2) Aaron Donald (+700) | 5 votes: Bergman, Blair, Reuter, Shook, Smith.
T-3) Nick Bosa (+1400) | 3 votes: Cersosimo, Edholm, Trotter.
T-3) Myles Garrett (+750) | 3 votes: Hanzus, Parr, Patra.
5) Joey Bosa (+2000) | 2 votes: Filice, Hall.
T-6) Derwin James (+5000) | 1 vote: Zierlein.
T-6) T.J. Watt (+700) | 1 vote: Grant.
Why Jeffri Chadiha chose Micah Parsons: The Cowboys took a gifted linebacker in last year's draft and eventually discovered they had one of the league's best pass rushers. Imagine what schemes Dallas defensive coordinator Dan Quinn will cook up to maximize Parsons in Year 2.
OFFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
(8 votes: Battista, Bergman, Edholm, Filice, Patra, Ross, Smith, Trotter.)
2) George Pickens (+1000) | 7 votes: Bhanpuri, Chadiha, Parr, Reuter, Rosenthal, Sessler, Shook.
3) Kenny Pickett (+900) | 4 votes: Blair, Cersosimo, Hall, Hanzus.
T-4) Breece Hall (+1200) | 2 votes: Tomlinson, Zierlein.
T-4) Dameon Pierce (+1000) | 2 votes: Rank, Warner.
T-6) Drake London (+1400) | 1 vote: Grant.
T-6) Christian Watson (+1600) | 1 vote: Mariucci.
Why Jim Trotter chose Chris Olave: This really wasn't a difficult choice. First, Olave is talented. Second, he has a QB who is proficient with the deep ball. Third, defenses figure to pay a lot of attention to Michael Thomas and Alvin Kamara, as well as Jarvis Landry, so Olave could see a lot of one-on-one coverage, which I expect him to win.
DEFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
(15 votes: Battista, Blair, Cersosimo, Chadiha, Edholm, Filice, Hall, Mariucci, Patra, Reuter, Ross, Sessler, Tomlinson, Warner, Zierlein.)
2) Travon Walker (+850) | 4 votes: Rosenthal, Shook, Smith, Trotter.
3) Sauce Gardner (+1200) | 3 votes: Bergman, Grant, Hanzus.
T-4) Jaquan Brisker (+4000) | 1 vote: Rank.
T-4) George Karlaftis (+2000) | 1 vote: Parr.
T-4) Derek Stingley Jr. (+1200) | 1 vote: Bhanpuri.
Why Kevin Patra chose Aidan Hutchinson: Hutchinson enters the NFL with athleticism, power and a motor to stack tackles and sacks. The No. 2 overall pick will be used all over the front to wreck backfields, proving to be the best D-lineman Detroit has boasted since it took former DROY Ndamukong Suh with the No. 2 selection back in 2010. Also, we know voters love a good story, and the homegrown kid helping turn around a moribund franchise makes Hutch an easy selection here.
COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR
(8 votes: Bergman, Cersosimo, Edholm, Hall, Parr, Patra, Tomlinson, Trotter.)
2) Christian McCaffrey (+900) | 7 votes: Blair, Filice, Hanzus, Mariucci, Rank, Sessler, Warner.
3) Derrick Henry (+450) | 3 votes: Battista, Chadiha, Reuter.
T-4) Saquon Barkley (+1200) | 2 votes: Rosenthal, Smith.
T-4) Khalil Mack (+2500) | 2 votes: Bhanpuri, Ross.
T-6) J.K. Dobbins (+2500) | 1 vote: Zierlein.
T-6) JuJu Smith-Schuster (+1800) | 1 vote: Grant.
T-6) Michael Thomas (+1800) | 1 vote: Shook.
Why Eric Edholm chose Jameis Winston: Winston was playing pretty darn well a year ago when he got hurt, and though there's no guarantee he'll match that level of performance, his weapons and a manageable schedule (with most of the tougher games at home) give me hope we can see him enjoy success in 2022. I'll back Winston in what figures to be a flashpoint season for his somewhat-wayward career.
COACH OF THE YEAR
(8 votes: Battista, Blair, Grant, Mariucci, Rank, Reuter, Shook, Trotter.)
2) Brandon Staley (+1300) | 5 votes: Chadiha, Hanzus, Sessler, Tomlinson, Warner.
T-3) Doug Pederson (+1500) | 2 votes: Edholm, Hall.
T-3) Frank Reich (+1800) | 2 votes: Smith, Zierlein.
T-3) Nick Sirianni (+1800) | 2 votes: Filice, Rosenthal.
T-3) Mike Tomlin (+3000) | 2 votes: Bergman, Parr.
T-7) Dennis Allen (+2500) | 1 vote: Cersosimo.
T-7) Bill Belichick (+2000) | 1 vote: Patra.
T-7) John Harbaugh (+2500) | 1 vote: Ross.
T-7) Josh McDaniels (+2200) | 1 vote: Bhanpuri.
Why Steve Mariucci chose Sean McDermott: McDermott probably should've already won this award, having led the Bills to the playoffs in four of his five seasons as head coach. With all eyes on his team after its crushing playoff exit a season ago, McDermott leads Buffalo to another fantastic season in 2022 and finally gets the recognition he deserves for helping turn this franchise around.
EACH ANALYST'S BALLOT
Analyst | MVP | OPOY | DPOY | OROY | DROY | Comeback | Coach |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Judy Battista | Josh Allen | Justin Jefferson | Micah Parsons | Chris Olave | Aidan Hutchinson | Derrick Henry | Sean McDermott |
Jeremy Bergman | Joe Burrow | Ja'Marr Chase | Aaron Donald | Chris Olave | Sauce Gardner | Jameis Winston | Mike Tomlin |
Ali Bhanpuri | Derek Carr | Justin Jefferson | Micah Parsons | George Pickens | Derek Stingley Jr. | Khalil Mack | Josh McDaniels |
Tom Blair | Justin Herbert | Ja'Marr Chase | Aaron Donald | Kenny Pickett | Aidan Hutchinson | Christian McCaffrey | Sean McDermott |
Brooke Cersosimo | Lamar Jackson | Justin Jefferson | Nick Bosa | Kenny Pickett | Aidan Hutchinson | Jameis Winston | Dennis Allen |
Jeffri Chadiha | Josh Allen | Davante Adams | Micah Parsons | George Pickens | Aidan Hutchinson | Derrick Henry | Brandon Staley |
Eric Edholm | Justin Herbert | Davante Adams | Nick Bosa | Chris Olave | Aidan Hutchinson | Jameis Winston | Doug Pederson |
Gennaro Filice | Josh Allen | Lamar Jackson | Joey Bosa | Chris Olave | Aidan Hutchinson | Christian McCaffrey | Nick Sirianni |
Marcas Grant | Josh Allen | Ja'Marr Chase | T.J. Watt | Drake London | Sauce Gardner | JuJu Smith-Schuster | Sean McDermott |
DeAngelo Hall | Josh Allen | Justin Jefferson | Joey Bosa | Kenny Pickett | Aidan Hutchinson | Jameis Winston | Doug Pederson |
Dan Hanzus | Justin Herbert | Christian McCaffrey | Myles Garrett | Kenny Pickett | Sauce Gardner | Christian McCaffrey | Brandon Staley |
Steve Mariucci | Josh Allen | Deebo Samuel | Micah Parsons | Christian Watson | Aidan Hutchinson | Christian McCaffrey | Sean McDermott |
Dan Parr | Josh Allen | Jalen Hurts | Myles Garrett | George Pickens | George Karlaftis | Jameis Winston | Mike Tomlin |
Kevin Patra | Justin Herbert | Justin Jefferson | Myles Garrett | Chris Olave | Aidan Hutchinson | Jameis Winston | Bill Belichick |
Adam Rank | Josh Allen | Justin Herbert | Micah Parsons | Dameon Pierce | Jaquan Brisker | Christian McCaffrey | Sean McDermott |
Chad Reuter | Aaron Rodgers | Jonathan Taylor | Aaron Donald | George Pickens | Aidan Hutchinson | Derrick Henry | Sean McDermott |
Gregg Rosenthal | Patrick Mahomes | No entry | Micah Parsons | George Pickens | Travon Walker | Saquon Barkley | Nick Sirianni |
Marc Ross | Patrick Mahomes | Lamar Jackson | Micah Parsons | Chris Olave | Aidan Hutchinson | Khalil Mack | John Harbaugh |
Marc Sessler | Justin Herbert | Justin Jefferson | Micah Parsons | George Pickens | Aidan Hutchinson | Christian McCaffrey | Brandon Staley |
Nick Shook | Josh Allen | Jonathan Taylor | Aaron Donald | George Pickens | Travon Walker | Michael Thomas | Sean McDermott |
Matt "Money" Smith | Josh Allen | Justin Herbert | Aaron Donald | Chris Olave | Travon Walker | Saquon Barkley | Frank Reich |
LaDainian Tomlinson | Josh Allen | Jonathan Taylor | Micah Parsons | Breece Hall | Aidan Hutchinson | Jameis Winston | Brandon Staley |
Jim Trotter | Justin Herbert | Justin Jefferson | Nick Bosa | Chris Olave | Travon Walker | Jameis Winston | Sean McDermott |
Kurt Warner | Joe Burrow | Derrick Henry | Micah Parsons | Dameon Pierce | Aidan Hutchinson | Christian McCaffrey | Brandon Staley |
Lance Zierlein | Josh Allen | Jonathan Taylor | Derwin James | Breece Hall | Aidan Hutchinson | J.K. Dobbins | Frank Reich |