2007 NFL Awards

MVP
Candidates:

Brian Westbrook: Incredibly gifted player who makes all he does look effortless. No wasted motion. Led the NFL in yards from scrimmage. No running back in football meant more to their team than Westbrook meant to the Eagles.

Tom Brady: Set record for TD passes and led New England to undefeated regular
season. Led league in completion percentage, TDs and yards passing all while throwing only 8 interceptions.

David Gerrard: 18 TD passes vs. only 3 interceptions. Outstanding poise and decision making in leading Jacksonville to the playoffs. Playing in only 12 games will hurt his chances.

Randy Moss: Set NFL record for most TD receptions in a season with 23. A freakish athlete, because of his size, speed and hands, no player in the NFL can guard Moss one on one. He is a member of the two most prolific offenses in NFL history, the 1998 Minnesota Vikings and the 2007 New England Patriots.

Tony Romo: Led Dallas to the #1 seed in the NFC playoffs with 4211 yards passing and 36 TD passes. A couple of terrible games along with a lack of production in the final weeks of the season will hinder his chances.

Honorable mentions: Brett Favre, Ben Rothlisberger, Ladainian Tomlinson, Payton Manning.

Winner: Tom Brady. The numbers are way to extraordinary to give the nod to any other candidate especially considering that New England went undefeated.


OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR NOT NAMES TOM BRADY:
Candidates:

Randy Moss: See above

Brian Westbrook: See above

Ladainian Tomlinson: Best all round running back in the game. Passion illustrated in post game press conferences when he is brought to tears because of losing. May end up as the most decorated back in history.

Honorable mentions: Reggie Wayne, Terrell Owens, Adrian Peterson, Tony Romo.

Winner: Randy Moss. Will go down as on of the top 5 WRs of all time and this is his finest season to date.


DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR:
Candidates:

Jarred Allen: Led the NFL in sacks with 15.5 in only 14 games played. Only playmaker on the Chief’s defensive line, so he is always battling double teams and half back chip blocks. Incredible combination of strength and quickness. Caught two TD passes this season as well.

Patrick Willis: Led the NFL as a rookie in total tackles with 174 and solo tackles with an outstanding 140. Is already the heart and soul of the San Francisco defense.

DeMarcus Ware: Led the Cowboys in sacks and forced fumbles with 14 and 4 respectively. He physically dominates blockers on the run and has the speed to rush the QB from the outside or cover a TE on passing downs.

Bob Sanders: Arguable, he means more to his team on defense than does any other player. There is no doubt that he is an incredible talent and the heart of Indi’s defense, but the lack of sufficient statistics may keep him from winning the prize.

Honorable Mentions: Julian Peterson, Albert Haynsworth, Brian Urlacher, Antonio Cromartie, Mike Vrabel, Patrick Kearney.

Winner: DeMarcus Ware. No defensive player really stood out from all the others this season. I went with Ware because he is the best defensive player on the #1 seeded team in the NFC.


COACH OF THE YEAR:
Candidates:

Dick Juron: Buffalo was a tough team with Juron having his players believing they can win every week. Had an opportunity to make the playoffs with wins in the last few weeks of the year, an excellent achievement in the very tough AFC, but a lack of experienced talent ultimately did them in. The Bills were 2 last second field goals away from a 9 win season. Buffalo has a good young core of players and will build on the success of this season.

Bill Belichick: No matter how much talent is on a team, and New England has plenty, it is an outstanding accomplishment to go undefeated in the regular season. The Pats are as mentally strong and prepared as they are talented. All coaches preach a “we will take it game by game” mantra, but no coach is better at keeping his players prepared on a game by game basis as is Belichick.

Jon Gruden: The Bucs went from a 4 win season a year ago to the division title this season. Tampa has the #2 overall defense in the league and an offense that protects the ball, doing enough to win. Gruden is extremely good at managing a game, putting his players in the right opportunities to make plays and maybe most importantly, not making any bone headed play calls to lose a game. The + 15 turnover difference is a testament to this.

Romeo Crennell: I have blasted Crennel a few times in my blog, but when all is said and done, his Cleveland Browns team 10 games this season. He made all the important decisions, with the best decision being to trade Frye after week one and put Anderson in.

Tony Dungy: With all the injuries on both sides of the ball, Dungy still found a way to get his team 13 wins and into the playoffs for what seems the 50th time in a row. He will certainly be regarded as one of the finest head coaches to ever don a whistle when his time is up.

Honorable mentions: Jack Del-Rio, Jeff Fischer, Mike McCarthy, Joe Gibbs.

Winner: Bill Belichick. As much as I want to give the award to Jon Gruden, 16-0 just stands out too far for me not to give it the ringleader of a perfect season.


OFFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR:
Candidates:

Marshawn Lynch: Extremely tough runner who was the focus of the Bills offense. Averaged over 85 yards a game and was 11th in the NFL with 1115 yards rushing.

Joe Thomas: Was best player on the Cleveland Brown offensive line that surprised many with their output this season.

Adrian Peterson: Second in the NFL in both rushing yards (1341) and rushing TDs (12). Set the NFL record for most rushing yards in a game with 296. Awesome combination of power, vision and speed.

Dwayne Bowe: Led all rookie WR in receiving yards, catches and TDs. Has the speed to be a deep threat, with the hands and size to be a possession receiver.

Winner: Adrian Peterson. Tempted to give the award to Joe Thomas, but Peterson’s record setting performance in November against the Chargers tilted the scales.


DEFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR:
Candidates:

Gaines Adams: Led rookies in sacks with 6. Started the last 8 games and is now an important piece of Tampa’s #2 ranked defense.

David Harris: Registered 127 tackles and 5 sacks for the Jets. Seems to always be in on the tackle and has great instincts for the LB position.

Patrick Willis: Led the NFL as a rookie in total tackles with 174 and solo tackles with an outstanding 140. Had a 20 tackle game against Tampa in week 16. Is already the heart and soul of the San Francisco defense.

Jonathan Beason: Not much notoriety for Beason because of the poor showing Carolina had this season. Registered 140 tackles with an interception and one fumble recovery.

Honorable Mentions: LaRon Landry, Leon Hall, Reggie Nelson, Darrelle Revis.

Winner: Patrick Willis. Going to the Pro Bowl as a rookie and will probably go every year for a decade or so.