Now that eight weeks are officially in the books, we can assess the first half of the NFL season. Here are the irrelevant midseason awards.
By Ryan Reynolds
New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers are performing as expected, but what about St. Louis Rams running back Todd Gurley? Isn’t he a rookie coming off an ACL injury? The kid is playing lights out.
Along with the halfway point, comes awards, and if the season was to end at this very moment, here are ESNY’s midseason award winners.
Defensive Rookie of the Year
Kansas City Chiefs Cornerback Marcus Peters
The 18th overall pick by the Kansas City Chiefs is showing doubters why he was chosen in the first round. Peters recorded his first career interception on the very first play of his professional career against the Houston Texans, and ever since then, Peters has been living up to the hype.
The rookie from Washington has recorded 3 interceptions, one 55 yard pick six, 11 pass deflections, and has tallied a total of 35 tackles. If Peters keeps this kind of play up, he will become a multiple Pro Bowl cornerback.
Offensive Rookie of the Year
St. Louis Rams Running back Todd Gurley
This award recipient is a no brainer and it has to go to St. Louis running back Todd Gurley.
To go along with his eye bursting stats, he’s also an amazing story. Gurley was the starting running back for the Georgia Bulldogs in 2014, and was the front-runner to win the Heisman Trophy, until one play ended it all. Gurley tore his ACL forcing him to sit out the rest of the 2014 season.
He declared for the NFL draft even though scouts were shaky about whether or not he would return to true form, but the Rams decided to take the risk and select Gurley with the 10th overall pick. Over the offseason, Gurley trained hard to recover from his serious knee injury, and ever since his return in Week 4, he has produced record breaking stats.
Through the midway point of the season, Gurley is averaging 115 yards per game (most in the NFL), and ranks fifth in the league in total rushing yards with 575 on only 94 attempts. He is tied for second in the league in most runs for 20 plus yards and he is the record holder for most combined rushing yards in a player’s first four career starts.
“Hey scouts, do you think he will return to true form now?” We think so.
Comeback Player of the Year
Arizona Cardinals Running Back Chris Johnson
Who else is better for this award? The man who was once known as “CJ2K” for eclipsing the 2,000 rushing yard mark back in 2009, is starting to make spectators reminisce.
After the historical ’09 season, Johnson’s production started to decline. He wasn’t making defenders miss or getting into the open field anymore, ending in the Tennessee Titans cutting him after the 2013 season. Johnson then signed with the New York Jets, and again had an unproductive season, resulting in the team declining his contract, making “CJ2K” a free agent once more.
In March of 2015, Johnson’s life, was put in jeopardy.
A drive-by shooting took place at a Florida stoplight leaving a bullet in Johnson’s left shoulder and resulting in the death of his friend. After the incidents Johnson didn’t know what his NFL future would hold. He started his road to recovery and Johnson resumed his NFL career with a new team, the Arizona Cardinals. The Cardinals initially signed Johnson to backup then-starting running back Andre Ellington, but when Ellington went down with a sprained PCL in Week 1, Johnson was forced to take the lead role and be the featured back in a stellar Cardinals’ offense.
Ever since taking the field in Week 1, Johnson hasn’t looked back and remains the starting running back for Arizona. This season, Johnson has compiled 676 rushing yards on 141 attempts, is averaging 4.8 yards per carry and has scored 3 touchdowns. Talk about a come back story.
Most Surprising Player
Houston Texans Quarterback Brian Hoyer
Wait… Brian Hoyer, really?
The quarterback of the 3-5 Houston Texans? The guy who was benched for a player who isn’t even on the team anymore?
Yes, that Brian Hoyer. Do not let the Texans’ record fool you, just take a look at Hoyer’s stats. He didn’t start for three games and he still ranks in the top 10 in touchdown passes. Wanna know what other categories Hoyer ranks in? He ranks in the top 10 in passer rating, yards-per-completion, and adjusted yards-per-pass.
Hoyer also has thrown the same amount of touchdown passes as Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck with less interceptions. Hoyer has thrown for 13 touchdowns and six interceptions versus Luck’s 13 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.
Hoyer playing better football than Luck? Talk about surprising.
Defensive Player of the Year
Oakland Raiders Free Safety Charles Woodson
The Silver and Black are finally starting to see success. After years of misery and rebuilding, the Raiders are finally playing football again. Al Davis would be proud.
39-year old Charles Woodson is the Raiders defensive leader and he’s showing that heart plays a factor in the game of football. Despite being the oldest defensive player in the NFL, the 18 year veteran leads the league in interceptions, recording five at the halfway point of the season. Takeaways aside, Woodson has also managed to record 24 tackles, 9 assisted tackles and 7 pass deflections.
Offensive Player of the Year
Atlanta Falcons Wide Receiver Julio Jones
The 26-year old from Alabama is starting to enter the prime of his bright career. Through the midway point, Jones has racked up 896 receiving yards (most in the NFL) on 70 receptions, averages 12.7 yards per catch and is tied for fourth in both 20-plus yard receptions and touchdowns.
Jones is having the best offensive year among wide outs and is producing offensive player of the year numbers.
Coach of the Year
Carolina Panthers Head Coach Ron Rivera
Who else would be most fitting for this award than Carolina Panthers Head Coach Ron Rivera? Rivera has led his team to a 7-0 start, which is the best in franchise history.
But the most impressive feat? He is coaching his team to victory despite losing his No. 1 wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin before the start of the regular season.
Would you believe that a team is 7-0 if you saw that Ted Ginn Jr. was their second leading receiver? It is hard to imagine. Just goes to show just how good of a job Coach Rivera is doing in Carolina.
Most Valuable Player
New England Patriots Quarterback Tom Brady
Some things get better with age, and Tom Brady’s stats this season proves that saying is correct. The 38-year old is having one of his best statistical seasons and currently has his team sitting pretty with a 7-0 record. Brady currently ranks second in the NFL in passing yards with 2,410, averaging 344 yards per game. He’s also completing 68.9 percent of his passes and his quarterback rating is a 115.8 which is the best in the NFL.
Want to know the most eye-popping stat? Through seven games, Brady has thrown a total of 20 touchdowns (T-most in the NFL) and has only thrown one interception. Oh yeah, he also said he could play 10 more years. If Brady keeps this statistical excellence going, there is no doubt he will run the table when it’s time to vote for MVP.
The first half of the 2015 regular season was filled with great finishes, heartbreak and record breaking performances. It was definitely one for the books.
Now let’s see what the rest has in store.