2009 NFL Awards From MVP To Biggest Hit

The 2009 NFL regular season was a great one. We saw a 2000-yard rusher, two teams that nearly went undefeated, and plenty of drama.

As the playoffs begin, I want to take a look at who should win the regular season awards. We’ll also look at some awards that the NFL doesn’t give out.

Let’s start out with some fun before we get into the real discussion:

Biggest Hits of the Year (in no particular order).

Vote on which you think is the best in the poll on the right.

1. Ray Lewis vs. Chad Ochocinco

2. Zach Follett vs. Danny Amendola

3. Adrian Peterson vs. William Gay

4. Adrian Peterson vs. Al Harris

5. Terrence Newman vs. Roddy White

Best Play of the Year

Brett Favre’s game-winning touchdown pass to Greg Lewis against the San Francisco 49ers.

This was one of the best plays I have ever seen. How did Lewis keep his feet in bounds?

NFL MVP

There are a number of players who had remarkable seasons in 2009. Chris Johnson ran for over 2,000 yards and broke Marshall Faulk’s record for total yards from scrimmage.

Drew Brees led the league in passer rating, passing touchdowns, and completion percentage. Brett Favre had nearly identical numbers to Brees, but won fewer games. Peyton Manning led his team to a 14-0 start before Indianapolis rested its starters.

Andre Johnson had nearly 1,600 yards receiving and led the NFL in targets.

While I do think that defensive players should be considered for MVP, I didn’t see any performances from players on top-flight teams deserving of the award this year.

My pick: Drew Brees. Not only did he put up ridiculous numbers, Brees has played a huge part in taking the Saints from being mediocre in 2008 to being a top-flight team in 2009.

Offensive Player of the Year

The players up for this award are the same as those mentioned above in the MVP discussion.

Since this award is less dependent on overall team performance, I’m giving this one to Chris Johnson of the Tennessee Titans.

Johnson had one of the best offensive seasons for a running back in NFL history with 2,509 yards from scrimmage, an NFL record. Johnson often carried the hapless Titans offense single-handed as the team struggled to put the ball in the air.

Defensive Player of the Year

Darren Sharper had an incredible season ball-hawking for the New Orleans Saints while snatching nine passes and scoring three touchdowns.

Patrick Willis had a ridiculous season leading the NFL in tackles while also posting four sacks, eight passes defended, three interceptions, three forced fumbles, and a touchdown.

Elvis Dumervil led the NFL with 17 sacks.

While each of those players is very deserving of an award, one player stands out above everyone else: Charles Woodson, cornerback for the Green Bay Packers.

Woodson was absolutely dominant this season: 74 tackles, 18 passes defended, nine interceptions, two sacks, four forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and three touchdowns. He is my NFL Defensive Player of the Year.

Offensive Rookie of the Year

There are just a few rookies on the offensive side of the ball that stand out.

Knowshon Moreno had 947 rushing yards and seven touchdowns, both tops among rookie running backs.

Among receivers, Austin Collie, Percy Harvin, and Hakeem Nicks stand out as the top performers. Collie had seven touchdowns, most for rookie receivers while Nicks and Harvin led all rookies in receiving yards.

All of the rookie quarterbacks struggled, so none of them are up for consideration for this award.

My pick: Percy Harvin, wide receiver, Minnesota Vikings.

While Harvin proved to be a great receiver this season, he also made an incredible impact in the return game. For a Vikings team that has not had a decent return man this decade, Harvin was a game-changer. He scored two touchdowns and averaged over 27 yards per return.

Defensive Rookie of the Year

This award has already been given to Brian Cushing, linebacker for the Houston Texans and I agree with that decision.

Cushing had 134 total tackles, five sacks, fourteen passes defended, two forced fumbles, and four interceptions. He was the best all-around rookie defender.

Runners-up for this award would be Jairus Byrd of the Bills who had nine interceptions, Clay Matthews who had 10 sacks for the Green Bay Packers, and Brian Orakpo who had 11 sacks for the Washington Redskins.

Coach of the Year

Sean Payton, New Orleans Saints. Payton led the Saints to a great season and can be given a lot of credit for hiring Gregg Williams as defensive coordinator.

Runner up: Jim Caldwell, Indianpolis Colts.

Comeback Player

While many will want to give this award to Tom Brady, I’m going to go with the underdog. Yes, Tom Brady had a great season coming back from a major knee injury. But we all knew that was going to happen, didn’t we?

Vince Young of the Tennessee Titans is my comeback player of the year, hands down.

Young is a guy many thought would be out of the NFL after what transpired last season. After being benched and going through a deep depression, it seemed the Titans were ready to move on without him.

After a terrible 0-6 start, the Titans threw Young out there in desperation. What did Young do? Only what he’s been doing his whole life: Win football games.

Young set a career high for quarterback rating with an 82.8 rating while leading the Titans to an 8-2 record as the starter. This was the Vince Young we thought we would see after his rookie season.

I hope to see more good things from Young and the Titans next season.

Best “Out of Nowhere” Performances

These players came from absolutely nowhere to put up huge seasons:

1a. Sidney Rice, WR, Minnesota Vikings.

1b. Miles Austin, WR, Dallas Cowboys.

These two receivers both increased their yardage totals by over 1,000 yards between 2008 and 2009 and became star receivers. Great seasons for both.

2. Jamaal Charles, RB, Kansas City Chiefs.

If the Chiefs could look into the future, they would have dumped LJ a lot sooner. Charles rushed for over 1,000 yards…in the second half of the season alone.

Had he played all season, who knows, he could have topped 2,000 yards with Chris Johnson. For a guy they called “too small” and “too fumble prone” this was an awesome, out of nowhere performance.

Worst Trade

The Chicago Bears gave up two first round picks to get Jay Cutler. Cutler threw 26 interceptions and led the Bears to a 7-9 record, worse than in 2008.

Kyle Orton, who won nine games with the Bears in 2008, had the best statistical season of his career in Denver.

Cutler may have more upside than Orton, but he is not worth two first round picks. He makes too many bad decisions to be a true difference-maker at quarterback.

Best Draft Pick

Michael Oher, Baltimore Ravens. What a great value he turned out to be. If NFL teams had a crystal ball, he may have gone in the top five, or even first overall.

Worst Draft Pick

I think we all knew this when it happend, but Darrius Heyward-Bey was an awful draft pick. He can’t catch, which makes it difficult to succeed as a wide receiver. He looks to be 2009’s Troy Williamson.

2009 was a great NFL season, let’s hope it continues in the playoffs.

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Vikings Coach Brad Childress Grows Back Mustache in Power Play (Satire)

Over the last few weeks, an epic battle for control of the Vikings has raged between Brett Favre’s silver scruff and Brad Childress’s newly acquired beard.

Since Childress became coach of the Minnesota Vikings, he has often ruled with an iron mustache. Until recently, when the coach switched to a more “Minnesota Outdoors” look, the mustache was a staple.

Commentators have been scrutinizing Childress over his decision to grow a full beard, because of the dulling effect it has had on the powerful mustache.

After much speculation, the mustache, which many claim can be seen from outer space, has made an appearance once again on the coach’s face.

When asked about his decision to remove the rest of the beard and groom his mustache, Childress said; “It’s standard operating procedure. This is something we do week-in and week-out.”

Brett Favre, whose audibles have frustrated Childress lately, said of the mustache; “It’s a technique coaches have used for years to exert their dominance. But, man, I’ve been in this game a long time and I’ve never seen a ‘stache like that one.”

Since re-instituting the mustache, Childress has overruled the important decisions of everyone, from the trainers down to the team chef.

Childress has also brought corporal punishment back into the locker room.

After dropping a catch in practice, Vikings receiver Bernard Berrian was given 10 “hand-lashings.”

Scientists have linked the powers of the mustache to a rare strain of hyper-PMS. Renowned human biologist Mike Darwin, said of the ‘stache; “It causes mood swings we have never seen before and exerts complete dominance. The entire array of human emotion is unleashed within that mustache.”

It remains to be seen how the mustache drama will play out in Minnesota. Will it lead the Vikings to victory, or will all of the Vikings be sleeping on the proverbial couch for the rest of the season?

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Mark My Words: The Minnesota Vikings Need Colt McCoy in 2010

Over the past few years, the Minnesota Vikings have done an incredible job of using both the draft and free agency to build a talented team. The signings of Jared Allen, Steve Hutchinson, and Brett Favre were incredible moves.

Draft picks like Adrian Peterson, Sidney Rice, Percy Harvin, and Phil Loadholt also turned out to be great decisions. This year, though, is a make-or-break year when it comes to the Vikings’ offseason.

Should Brett Favre finally retire for good, the Vikings would be left once again without a franchise quarterback. However, should Favre stay for one more season, the Vikings still don’t have a viable option at quarterback in 2011.

With a draft pick likely in the 25-32 range, quarterbacks Jimmy Clausen and Sam Bradford will likely be out of reach in 2010. However, one player who seems to be sliding down draft boards for no apparent reason is Colt McCoy.

The Vikings benefited from the sliding of Adrian Peterson and Percy Harvin on draft day, and could benefit once more should McCoy be available for them.

While scouts knock McCoy’s arm strength and Texas’ shotgun-heavy offense, I see McCoy as a great fit for the Vikings. Colt McCoy is one of the most accurate passers in college football history.

McCoy is also a great passer outside of the pocket and on the move, which translates well to the Vikings play-action-heavy attack.

While McCoy has not shown a great ability to convert in the vertical passing game, he is incredibly smart and accurate on short and intermediate routes. In the Vikings’ West Coast offense, McCoy could be great. McCoy’s arm strength grades out at above-average, but not great; so he could be a decent deep-ball thrower in the future.

Scouts seem to be obsessed with Sam Bradford and Jimmy Clausen, despite each quarterback having similar question marks. Neither Clausen or Bradford has elite arm strength. Bradford also played in a shotgun-heavy offense and is recovering from surgery on his throwing arm.

While I might take Bradford or Clausen before McCoy, I see McCoy as an incredible value in the late first round. He should grade out to be an above-average quarterback down the road.

Best case scenario:

1. As scouts predict, McCoy is available when the Vikings select at the end of the first round and the Vikings take him.
2. Brett Favre returns to play one last season with the Vikings, allowing McCoy to learn from him for a year.

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