The NFL Honors ceremony, in which the league announces the winners of its major awards (as voted on by the Associated Press voters), has become one of the premier events of the week leading up to the Super Bowl. In Houston, you may not have been aware of that, since over the last several years, there hasn’t really been any Texans in the nix for major awards.
That’s changed this year, and changed about as drastically as the Texans’ record from 2022 to 2023, in which they improved from 3-13-1 to 10-7 and a division title. For next Thursday’s NFL Honors ceremony, Texan fans will have four awards to pay particular attention to, as four Texans (two players, two coaches) have been named finalists in their respective categories.
Here they are, along with my predictions for each award:
AP Offensive Rookie of the Year
Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit Lions running back
Sam LaPorta, Detroit Lions tight end
Puka Nacua, Los Angeles Rams wide receiver
Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons running back
C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans quarterback
PREDICTION: STROUD
If it were any other season, Nacua would win this in a landslide, as the Rams’ fifth round pick out of BYU shattered several of the NFL’s rookie receiving records. However, Stroud was equally impressive in the record book and, more importantly, in a monumental turnaround for the Texans’ franchise. Stroud wins this one going away.
AP Defensive Rookie of the Year
Will Anderson, Houston Texans defensive end
Jalen Carter, Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle
Joey Porter Jr., Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback
Kobie Turner, Los Angeles Rams defensive tackler
Devon Witherspoon, Seattle Seahawks cornerback
PREDICTION: ANDERSON
This is a bit of an upset prediction, as Carter has been the favorite for most of the season, after a spectacular start to the season in Philly. Turner, another Rams middle round draft success story, is making a late run at the award, but I’ll trust the AP voters see Anderson’s season the same way the PFWA did last week, when they named him their Defensive Rookie of the Year.
AP Coach of the Year
Dan Campbell, Detroit Lions
John Harbaugh, Baltimore Ravens
DeMeco Ryans, Houston Texans
Kyle Shanahan, San Francisco 49ers
Kevin Stefanski, Cleveland Browns
PREDICTION: STEFANSKI
In retrospect, the Week 16 matchup between the Browns and the Texans probably decided this award. The Browns won in a blowout that day, and Stefanski, on the strength of winning games with four different starting quarterbacks this season, is the likely winner. For those wondering, these are regular season awards, so the Texans’ revenge in the playoffs is a moot detail, with respect to this award.
AP Assistant Coach of the Year
Ben Johnson, Detroit Lions offensive coordinator
Mike Macdonald, Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator
Todd Monken, Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator
Jim Schwartz, Cleveland Browns defensive coordinator
Bobby Slowik, Houston Texans offensive coordinator
PREDICTION: SCHWARTZ
Slowik even being a finalist is a major success story, for him and for DeMeco Ryans who brought Slowik with him from San Francisco. However, a big reason the Browns and Stefanski were so successful was Schwartz making their defense one of the best in football.
Here are the four other award categories to be announced, with my predicted winner in BOLD:
AP Most Valuable Player
Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills quarterback
Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens quarterback
Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco 49ers running back
Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys quarterback
Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers quarterback
AP Defensive Player of the Year
DaRon Bland, Dallas Cowboys cornerback
Maxx Crosby, Las Vegas Raiders defensive end
Myles Garrett, Cleveland Browns defensive end
Micah Parsons, Dallas Cowboys linebacker
T.J. Watt, Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker
AP Offensive Player of the Year
Tyreek Hill, Miami Dolphins wide receiver
Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens quarterback
CeeDee Lamb, Dallas Cowboys wide receiver
Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco 49ers running back
Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys quarterback
AP Comeback Player of the Year
Joe Flacco, Cleveland Browns quarterback
Damar Hamlin, Buffalo Bills safety
Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback
Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams quarterback
Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins quarterback
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This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2024.
