Here’s my 2023 AP awards ballot

Last night, they handed out the various NFL regular-season awards, as determined by a group of 50 members of the media.

For some strange reason, the Associated Press has given me one of the votes. In the interests of full and complete transparency, here’s my ballot for all of the AP regular-season awards.

Each ballot consists of our top three for all categories except MVP, which expands from three to five.

MVP

1.Lamar Jackson, Ravens.
2. Christian McCaffrey, 49ers.
3. Josh Allen, Bills.
4. Dak Prescott, Cowboys.
5. Tyreek Hill, Dolphins.

This was a no-brainer. Lamar won it the night he went to San Francisco and beat the Lions and called me Mike Florist/Flores (which I deserved). Lamar cemented it by throwing five touchdown passes the following weekend against the Dolphins, clinching the No. 1 seed in the AFC.

Coach of the year

1. DeMeco Ryans, Texans.
2. Kevin Stefanski, Browns.
3. Matt LaFleur, Packers.

I felt vindicated on this one when the Texans pummeled the Browns in the playoffs. What Ryans did was amazing. No one expected the Texans to make it to the playoffs. For the Browns, Stefanski’s case was hampered by the fact that the offense (his specialty) was more of a liability than a strength for a defense-heavy team.

Assistant coach of the year

1, Jim Schwartz, Browns.
2. Todd Monken, Ravens.
3. Dan Quinn, Cowboys.

Of all the big-name defensive coordinator hires from a year ago, Schwartz quietly stepped in for the Browns and immediately installed a system that got the most out of its best player, and that made all the other great players even better.

Comeback player of the year

1. Baker Mayfield, Buccaneers.
2, Damar Hamlin, Bills.
3. Joe Flacco, Browns.

This is always the hardest award to peg, because there’s no rule or even guidance as to what the player is coming back from. Many thought that Hamlin would clinch it the moment he suited up and played. But he didn’t play very much in 2023. Mayfield came back from two lost years (one to injury, and one to circumstance) to be the guy…


Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/heres-2023-ap-awards-ballot-150259638.html

Author : ProFootball Talk on NBC Sports

Publish date : 2024-02-09 15:02:59

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