Award Tour

We're a little more than halfway into the '09 NFL season. What does that mean exactly? Well, essentially nothing, but it gives bored bloggers like myself and Gabe a reason to hand out midseason awards. Chances are, you probably read Gabe's midseason piece from a couple of days ago(...and if you didn't, you should.....you can even do it before you read mine. We're not picky about order over here). Gabe chose to go the coaching rant route. I, however, in the effort to bring in more ad revenue for this here website, have decided to let some sponsers put their John Hancock..(pause)...on some of the honors.

Also, as a head's up, the awards are mostly being given on the winner's efforts so far but in case of a tie, as you'll see with the MVP pick, I gave the nod to who I think will flourish down the stretch. Also, in an effort to prove I don't know what the fuck I'm talking about, I put my preseason pick in there as well to compare results.

MVP: Drew Brees, Saints (Preseason pick: Brees) - Gabe pointed out Brees having a better season last year and the team going 8-8. That wasn't Drew Brees' fault. He couldn't help the team's defense falling apart like a patient on one of those Dr. Drew Rehab shows. He couldn't help that he was down to his 3rd string RB(who, granted, is now the starter this year, but I digress) for the last part of the season. Improvements on different facets of the ball has meant Brees isn't doing everything himself and, thus, his numbers aren't what they were last year. That being said, they're still pretty damn good(2,336 passing yards....good for 5th in the NFL. Plus, 17 TD passes which ties for the league lead).

Yes, Peyton Manning is putting up solid numbers with a couple of rookies at wideout and running back. He also has Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark. Look at Brees' supporting cast. Beyond Marques Colston(who isn't nearly as good as Wayne....or Clark for that matter), there's guys like Robert Meachem(a first round bust) and Devery Henderson(who has had Roberto Duran hands on top of being Mr. Glass during his wildly inconsistent career). Oh, and there's Gabe's boy Jeremy Shockey, who has been as reliable during his career as Sly Stone at The Grammys. As for that three-pronged running attack of Pierre Thomas, Mike Bell and Reggie Kardashian.....they're hardly a trio that makes defensive coaches lose sleep. Brees and Manning are dead even, in my eyes. We could easily have another co-MVP honor like we did with Manning and Steve McNair a few years ago. I went with Brees for two reasons.

One, by time you read this, Brees would have last been seen carving up the Rams while Manning will have a bit more trouble with Bill Belichick and the Patriots. Which brings me to the two's remaining schedule. After St. Louis, Brees goes at Tampa, New England, at Washington, at Atlanta, Dallas, Tampa and at Carolina. That's two games against potential playoff teams(three if you think Atlanta makes the wild card, which I don't.) and they come at home. Manning, on the other hand, has to deal with the Pats this week(who haven't been the thorn in Manning's side they used to be but are still tough), then he goes at Baltimore, at Houston, Tennessee, Denver, at Jacksonville, Jets, at Buffalo. I can see Manning having trouble in at least four of those games(maybe six if you include Jacksonville, who played them tough in Week 1 and the Jets, who are still decent defensively).

Secondly, and this point might be a bit nit-picky, I think voters eventually get tired of voting for the same guy every year. It happened to Michael Jordan in '98 when Karl Malone won the MVP. It happened to Barry Bonds when he lost out to Jeff Kent. Your resume can be a gift and a curse. Voters know Peyton's great. At some point, the standards for someone of Manning's greatness have to raise considerably to the point where he has to do something out-of-worldly to gain considerable recognition. If the Colts run the table, then yes, give him the MVP, but has Manning done anything this year that isn't the typical Peyton Manning first half? How many times have Manning's Colts started the season off winning 8, 9, 10 in a row? As for his supporting cast, we've seen this before. He made a solid player out of Marcus Pollard. He set records with Brandon Stokley. Hell, he was putting up numbers when injuries forced him to throw to guys like Craphonso Thorpe. Brees should have won it last year. Voters found Manning leading his team to the playoffs fresh off of two knee surguries more compelling than Brees chasing Marino's records on an 8-8 team, which is understandable. But eventually, Drew Brees' time has to come and I think this year makes up for last year's slight.

Offensive Player of the Year: Peyton Manning, Colts (LaDainian Tomlinson) - Like I said, him and Brees are dead-even, so whoever doesn't get the MVP, deserves this as a consellation prize. Gabe made a nice case for Chris Johnson, who has been the most dynamic player in football so far, but his team is 2-6. If you're making the case for CJ, you have to make the same case for Maurice Jones-Drew(who has nearly twice the TDs of CJ on a team with twice the wins) and Steven Jackson(who is third in the NFL in rushing on the worst team in football). Adrian Peterson got some consideration here but I think the media's slurpfest of Brett Favre kills AP's candidacy(as well as the presence of Percy Harvin, but I'll get to that later). Eagles wideout DeSean Jackson has 6 scores of more than 60 yards, but he also has only 26 catches and is 2nd on his own team in receiving yards.

The dark horse here is Matt Schaub, who leads the NFL in passing yards and TDs on a team with legit playoff hope, but it's hard to put him over Manning or Brees at this point. P.S. I don't what I was thinking with the LT pick. I'm pretty sure he died three years ago and nobody told us.

Defensive Player of the Year: Jared Allen, Vikings (Mario Williams) - My Vikings hatred almost made me go Darren Sharper(who is just as deserving) here, but you can't deny Allen's numbers. 10.5 sacks(granted, 80% of those came against the Packers), three forced fumbles and defensive touchdown. He's the main reason the Vikes swept the Packers(Yes, more so than Favre's corpse) as well as a big part in the team's 7-1 record. Sharper is tied for the league lead in picks with 7 and has made 3 house calls and certianly deserves the nod if the Saints take the top seed in the NFC, but Allen's impact has been a bit more obvious....mainly because of that stupid Jack-in-the-Box dance I had to see over and over again.

Offensive Rookie of the Year: Percy Harvin, Vikings (Beanie Wells) - Impressively, he has managed to trump teammate Adrian Peterson as the Vikings' most explosive weapon. His prowess in the return game has put points on the board either through short fields or Harvin taking it to the house himself. As a receiver, he's been the team's first legitimate deep threat since Randy Moss left and has breathed life into a dormant Viking passing game by emerging as Favre's most reliable option. Mark Sanchez isn't a terrible choice, but I have to see him win a few games in the cold before I give him some props.

Defensive Rookie of the Year: Jairus Byrd, Bills(Aaron Curry) - He's tied for the NFL lead in interceptions despite being on one of the worst defenses in the league. His numbers are comparable to Darren Sharper's(whom he shares the INT lead with), a man who is earning Defensive MVP consideration. Brian Cushing has been solid and certianly, you can give him the nod for because of his team's performance in comparison to Byrd's. To me, though, that makes Byrd's case stronger. Cushing plays with guys like Mario Williams, DeMeco Ryans, and Dunta Robinson. Byrd has nobody and yet he's been a playmaker, so I give him the nod.

Coach of the Year: Josh McDaniels - Nobody had this team at 6-2. Definitely not me, so I give him the edge over Marvin Lewis.

And, now, a word from our "sponsors":

The Biggest Disappointment of the Year brought to you by Transformers 2: Rise of the Fallen: Green Bay Packers - Their amazing preseason took them from a clumsy 6-10 team last year to legitimate Super Bowl consideration this year. Instead, a team that gave up 36 sacks all of last year has given up 37 already in 8 games. Fault can certianly be placed on the team's patchwork offensive line but some should trickle down to QB Aaron Rodgers, whose lack of trust in the boys up front has lead to him looking confused in the pocket and taking dumb sacks. The icing on the cake was last week's debacle against then-winless Tampa Bay, when Rodgers was sacked 6 times and threw 3 picks including the Pick-6 that put the game away. Granted, they sit in 2nd in the NFC North and aren't completely out of the playoff hunt at 4-4. However, they have games left against Dallas, Baltimore and Pittsburgh and with games like the one last week against the Bucs no longer a sure thing, this team might find itself once again on the outside looking in in January, not to mention the long-term damage it will put on a young star QB like Rodgers by subjecting him to too much punishment.

The Slumdog Millionaire Biggest Surprise Award: Denver Broncos - This team looked like an asylum with all the nutjobs running around the locker room from crybaby Jay Cutler whining his way to Chicago to the Brandon Marshall mess. However, Josh McDaniel showed why he was highly coveted coaching prospect by righting the ship and, while it remains to be seen whether they can avoid another collapse like last season, I will once again repeat what I said earlier: NOBODY had this team at 6-2.

The Drake Award(Most hype to a story or person that was both undeserving and disappointing): Mike Vick's return - We knew he wasn't going to be the same player after spending two years in the clink, but so far, I've seen better legs on Mickey Matthews' son. Vick has looked hesistant in the pocket on the few plays called for him, which has been mainly Wildcat formation gimmick plays or QB draws. We haven't seen the trademark cannon arm yet, but that hasn't stopped reports of where Vick will end up playing next year as sources have him pegged as the next QB of either the Bills or Redskins or Niners. The season's still young and Vick could still contribute down the stretch, but at this point, he's more Michael Bishop than Michael Vick.

The Soulja Boy Award(Terrible trend that will ruin the future as we know it) - Michael Crabtree's holdout - Michael Crabtree was the symbol of greed and ignorance for the first part of this season. Then, he "caved" and finally signed his contract. Then, a funny thing happened while laughing his way to the bank: He turned out to be a pretty good ball player. Granted, the Niners have won once since Crabtree's return, but that isn't Crabtree's fault(at least not ON the field). Sure, the team succumbing to Crabtree's demands and giving him the starting job before the ink was dry on his new deal probably killed team chemistry as well as San Fran's season, but Crabtree has been a reliable target for QB Alex Smith and while he's yet to touch the end zone, he gives Niner fans a glimpse into what things might be in the future. Unfortunately, he also gives future divas a glimpse of what can happen when your drafted by a team desperate for your services. On the bright side, next year, we can start calling the annual three-month holdout The Crabtree Award.

Last, but not least, there's the.......

Wagon Wheel Award(Story that makes my ears bleed everytime I hear it) - The Brett Favre Story - I've been quite vocal about Favre over the last few years and I know you don't want me to repeat myself over and over again, so I won't. That being said, did he we NEED Favre Cam for Favre's return to Lambeau? Did we need live coverage of an empty podium as we awaited Favre's post-Lambeau return comments? How many times do we need to hear he's having fun out there? How many times do we have to make Sportscenter debates over things Favre says in passing? Look, Brett Favre's a great QB. Nobody knows that better than me. Does it surprise me he's having the season he's having with Minnesota? Yes and no. Certianly, with his supporting cast and brick wall O-Line, you had to think things would be easier for Benedict Favre than they've been in years. That being said, he's still an old man coming off shoulder surgury and he still has his fastball. You have to be impressed by that. Now, the season's still early and we saw Favre fall apart around this time last year, so there's still an I Told You So moment left for me. Unfortunately, all that joy will inevitably be killed by the never-ending bromance between the media and the man Packers fans booed like a Hitler mural riding through Isreal. Brett Favre will always be a traitor and a selfish piece of shit to me. He'll also be one of the two or three greatest QBs to ever play this game no matter how this season plays out, which is why his name causes my brain immense agony.