NFL Awards: Mahomes Snags League MVP

By Bella Lee Staff writer

The Super Bowl has come and gone, which means the NFL season is officially over. In a thriller of a game, the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35, causing fans on both sides to feel a wide range of emotions. While we now have to wait until September for the regular season to start up again, we can at least revel at the awards that were given out this year.

The NFL MVP, who also turned out to be the Super Bowl MVP, was Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. This shattered a long-lasting drought, where the NFL MVP had not also won the Super Bowl since 1999, when that year’s MVP, Kurt Warner, went on to win Super Bowl XXXIV with the then-St. Louis Rams. Additionally, this snapped an eight-year streak where the winner of the coin toss at the beginning of the Super Bowl ultimately lost the game.

Offensive Player of the Year was given to Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson, who led the league in receptions (128), yards (1,809), and first downs (80) while scoring eight touchdowns, with his receiving yards record being the sixth most in a single NFL season. Defensive Player of the Year went to San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa, who previously won Defensive Rookie of the Year and led the NFL this year in sacks, with 18.5 in 16 games.

Coach of the Year went to New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll, who helped take the Giants all the way to the Divisional Round in the playoffs when they had not previously seen a playoff run since 2016. Assistant Coach of the Year went to 49ers Defensive Coordinator DeMeco Ryans, who assisted the 49ers into ranking number one in points and yards on defense for the first time ever.

Comeback Player of the Year went to Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith, where it all finally clicked, Geno spent 4 years with the New York Jets, 1 with the New York Giants, and 1 with the Los Angeles Chargers before his 2 years behind Russell Wilson with the Seahawks. Following Wilson’s trade to the Denver Broncos, Smith went on to put together a season that saw him lead the NFL in completion percentage (69.8), fourth in touchdown passes (30), and fifth in passer rating (100.9), earning his first Pro Bowl selection in his 10-year career. Additionally, Smith’s league-leading completion percentage also set a franchise record, as did his 399 completions, 572 attempts, and 4,282 passing yards.

Offensive Rookie of the Year was awarded to New York Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson, who was the 10th overall pick in this past year’s NFL draft and had 83 receptions for 1,103 yards and four touchdowns in 17 games played. Defensive Rookie of the Year was awarded to Jets cornerback Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, who was the 4th overall pick in the draft and put up 40 tackles, five tackles for loss, three sacks, three interceptions, and four pass deflections. Dak Prescott won Walter Payton Man of the Year, who has been open about mental health causes and ways to raise awareness for them. gon University and the University of Minnesota Crookston. After that, the Lakers look forward to competing on the road as they will play in North Carolina for their next couple of games. In addition to traveling to play in a tournament, two members of the softball team were names Atheltes of the Week by PSAC!

The official 2023-2024 NFL season starts on Sept. 8. We cannot wait to see what happens then!

Wednesday Feb 22, Greensburg PA, 5:30 p.m. Women’s Basketball vs. Seton Hill

Friday, Feb 24, Erie , 7:05 p.m. Men’s Hockey vs. Niagara University

Saturday, Feb 25, Erie, 12 p.m. Women’s Lacrosse vs. Walsh University