NFL Award Predictions
CJ Stroud is a Texan's quarterback (www.houstontexans.com).
September 25, 2024
Zach Myers, Editor
As we approach the upcoming NFL season, one of the hot topics throughout the year will be who will win the major NFL awards. There are plenty of opportunities for these rankings to change as the season progresses, but these are my predictions about who will win these NFL awards.
MVP: CJ Stroud.
Is it premature to declare a second-year quarterback as the MVP? Maybe, but CJ Stroud’s rookie season was so good he has gotten serious expectations around him and the whole Texans team. Last year, Stroud had arguably the best rookie quarterback season in NFL history, throwing for 4,108 yards and 23 touchdowns while leading the previously 3-13 Texans to a division title and wild card berth. The Texans have a great nucleus of young wide receivers around Stroud in Nico Collins and Tank Dell along with a serviceable veteran at tight end in Dalton Schultz. The addition of Stefon Diggs from the Bills should solidify the Texans roster and build them into one of the best teams in football, centered around Stroud. This season, I’m expecting him to throw for 4,500 yards with 34 touchdowns, and lead the Texans to the Super Bowl.
OPOY: Tyreek Hill
Theoretically, the MVP should win the Offensive Player of the Year award, but that is rarely the case. In this case, while Stroud has an amazing season, Tyreek Hill has a chance to run away with the award. Hill is one of his generation’s most skilled wide receivers, blowing away defenses weekly with his lightning speed and agility. Last season, he led the league in receiving yards with 1,799 and touchdowns with 13 while being on pace for the NFL receiving record throughout the season. The reason Hill can put up this good of production along with his notorious skill is due to the Dolphin's wealth of offensive weapons, including wideout Jaylen Waddle, new veteran Odell Beckham Jr, and the running back duo of Devon Achane and Raheem Mostert. While I expect a drop-off from last season considering how amazing he was, I still expect Hill to put up 1,500-1,600 yards with around 15 touchdowns.
TJ Watt is a linebacker for the Steelers (www.krqe.com).
DPOY: TJ Watt
Last season, there was a three-horse race for this award between Micah Parsons, Myles Garrett and TJ Watt. Despite arguably being better than the other two, Watt did not win the award. That will change this year, as Watt is too dominant of a linebacker for voters not to notice his skills. Watt has led the league in sacks in three of the last four seasons, including tying the all-time sack record at 22.5 in 2021. Despite Watt being the main target point for offenses facing the Steelers defense, he is still able to dominate due to his physicality as both a linebacker and defensive end as well as his quick pursuit off of blockers. While I believe Parsons could put up a good fight for this award, I believe Watt’s production will be too much to overlook. This season, I believe Watt will have 88 combined tackles and reach his second career 20-sack season.
Caleb Williams is a quarterback for the Chicago Bears (www.chicagobears.com).
OROY: Caleb Williams
While the 2024 offensive rookie class is extremely talented, Caleb Williams is the clear cut favorite for rookie of the year. Williams is one of the most hyped quarterbacks of the last 20 years due to his incredible style of play, including being mobile and able to throw 50 yard passes consistently. He was the number one pick in the 2024 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears who are desperately seeking redemption after Justin Fields failed. To ensure this, the Bears got a number of weapons in the offseason, including veteran wide receiver Keenan Allen, rookie wide receiver Rome Odunze and young running back D’andre Swift. I am not expecting them to seriously contend for the playoffs, but if Williams performs to mine and everyone else’s expectations, the Bears should be on the fringe of a 7th seed to start. Williams will end up having around 3,200 yards with 23 touchdowns and 450 yards on the ground.
DROY: Dallas Turner
Unlike in other years, defensive players didn’t get as much hype this year due to the wealth of offensive talent in this rookie class. One of the players that did get first round hype was Dallas Turner, who was drafted by the Vikings at 17th overall. Turner was one of the best linebackers in college during his time at Alabama, winning SEC defensive player of the year last season with 10 sacks and 14 tackles for loss. Turner is the ideal linebacker build at 6 foot 4 inches and 245 pounds, and runs a 4.46 40 yard dash time. This means he has quick feet, and is able to quickly get to any opposing offensive player. I believe Turner will have a decent rookie season, getting 9.5 sacks and racking up 70 tackles.
Comeback Player Of The Year: Joe Burrow
The comeback player of the year is always an interesting award, as on paper the award usually goes to an injured player who made a comeback and had a great season. As we saw last season however, Joe Flacco won the award despite not being injured and Damar Hamlin nearly dying. This season will fall on the injury side, as I believe Joe Burrow has the best chance to win the award this year despite the good number of candidates to choose from. The two most notable candidates for the award this year are Burrow and Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins. While Cousins has notably been a great regular season quarterback, adjusting to his new team in Atlanta after injury is going to be difficult for him, and I do not see him immediately getting back to form. Burrow has been one of the two or three best quarterbacks ever since he debuted in 2020, and has notably responded well from injuries. After his rookie season ended early, Burrow led the Bengals to the Super Bowl and nearly won. I’m predicting that Burrow will reach 4,100 yards and 34 touchdowns while leading the Bengals back to winning the AFC North.
Coach Of The Year: Dan Campbell
This award is the one that can sometimes be too hard to choose. Sometimes with coaches you cannot be objective, and you have to go with a great storyline based on the team’s expectations or how liked the coach is. It also doesn’t help that there are a plethora of great coaches in the league, but as for this season, I am predicting that Lions head coach Dan Campbell will win the award. Campbell has been the cornerstone of the Lions turnaround in the last few years, leading them last season to their first NFC championship game in over 30 years. He is a coach who is not afraid to take risks, attempting over 40 fourth downs and converting 24 of them last season. While at times he can be overly risky, he is an overall great coach who has the support of his players and (key for this award) the media. I have high expectations for the Lions this year, as they are my super bowl winner prediction for this season with Campbell winning the coach award.
