Defensive Rookie of the Year: TJ Watt, Pittsburgh Steelers

Younger brother of future Hall of Famer J.J. Watt. Same college, Wisconsin, as elder brother J.J. Watt. Similar draft hype as J.J. Watt coming into 2017, as we see at midseason, the hype was not misplaced. 7 games into the season, T.J. Watt has put up tremendous numbers. 21 solo tackles, 5 additional assisted tackles, 4 sacks, and 1 interception. Very strong start from his first outings as a professional, looking forward to seeing this young man grow into the monster that T.J. Watt can become.

Offensive Rookie of the Year: Deshaun Watson, Houston Texans

This may be a controversial pick for some, but a tough decision for me nonetheless. Running back Kareem Hunt and Quarterback Deshaun Watson will battle to the end of the season for the award.

However, Deshaun Watson appears to be more elite. Starting merely 5 games, Watson has still thrown for 1,297 yards, 15 touchdown, 5 interceptions, completing passes at a 61.5 percent clip. Deshaun has even rushed for an additional 202 yards with two touchdowns on the ground to compliment. Despite all this, an even more impressive stat is Watson’s total QBR at 80.8. This rating leads league, higher than the likes of household names such as Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, and even defending MVP Matt Ryan. This earns him the Offensive Rookie of the Year award.

Comeback Player of the Year: Rob Gronkowski, New England

Playing a mere 8 games last year, Rob Gronkowski had yet another injury riddled season. Despite playing only half the season, in two of the eight games, Gronkowski was nowhere to be seen with no receptions. His season ended with back surgery, putting Rob on the shelf for good. Entering the 2017 regular season, Gronkowski’s health and durability had become a large question mark for the New England offense. Nonetheless, the Gronk has bounced back in a way few experts projected. With 452 receiving yards and 4 touchdowns on 29 receptions, Rob Gronkowski has nearly surpassed the entirety of last season’s output. 25 receptions, 540 yards, and only 3 touchdowns was the 2016 statline among his eight outings. Barring another injury, *knock on wood* Rob Gronkowski should own this year’s Comeback Player of the Year award.

Coach of the Year: Sean McVay, Los Angeles Rams

The Rams may just be the surprise of the year. Following a miserable 4-12 record, the 2017 offseason did not show many roster changes, expecting to repeat the previous season’s failures.

Despite only notably adding wide receivers Sammy Watkins and Robert Woods, the Los Angeles Rams has made unbelievable changes moving forward. Their 5-2 record can be accounted due to the mindset of Head Coach Sean McVay. Following up the abomination of a coaching job completed by Jeff Fisher, McVay continues the dominant march of the defense. Additionally, Sean McVay has made the necessary changes to turn around the offense from a piddling 14.0 points per game in the 2016 to an astonishing 30.3 points per game, the highest scoring offense in the league. Coach Sean McVay is the difference moving this Rams football team past its previous mediocrity, earning McVay the 2017 Coach of the Year award.

Defensive Player of the Year: Melvin Ingram, Los Angeles Chargers

Bringing in a mighty 8 and a half sacks and 25 solo tackles, the LA Chargers have a beast at linebacker. The six-season veteran has made strides from an already elite level. Melvin Ingram has also forced two fumbles, recovering one. Ingram seemingly steps up his game daily, with the best of his outings coming within the last three games. Incoming offenses must be wary when moving the ball in his direction, giving space for other elite defenders to make plays. Defensive ends Joey Bosa and Chris McCain, cornerbacks Casey Hayward and Desmond King, and the entirety of the Charger defense benefit from his mere presence on the field.

Offensive Player of the Year: Alex Smith, Kansas City Chiefs

Prior to this week, Alex Smith was the frontrunner for this season’s MVP award. Despite this, Smith is being thwarted by a younger, more mobile quarterback. However, do not dare take anything away from Alex Smith. Twelve years into the league, Smith is seemingly putting up his best numbers yet. Passing for 1,979 yards, 15 touchdowns, and zero turnovers. All of this coming on a 72.4 completion percentage, enabling the Chiefs a hot 5-2 start. This record not only leads the the AFC West, but also leads the entire AFC. Their record matched only by the Patriots and Steelers. Capping off his impressive numbers, Alex Smith leads the entire league in passer rating at 120.5, solidifying him as the Offensive Player of the Year.

MVP: Carson Wentz, Philadelphia Eagles

Quite possibly the most difficult move was the decision to give the MVP nod to Carson Wentz. Despite having overall worse numbers by a slight margin, Wentz tops Alex Smith in a much more important category: Wins. The Eagles have soared high to grab the best record in the NFL, winning six of their first seven. Aided by the struggles of their NFC East rivals, as well as key injuries to top NFC contenders, such as Aaron Rodgers, Dalvin Cook, and Josh Norman, the Eagles seem to have a smooth ride to a first-round playoff bye. Wentz is passing for a remarkable 1,852 yards and 17 touchdowns, and completing 61.6 percent of his passes, with only 4 interceptions to rebut. Maintaining a total QBR of 72.7, a league wide third best, the impressive numbers by Wentz will be the determining factor for deep postseason success.

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Three Up

1. Peyton Manning and the 3-0 Denver Broncos.

They were expected to be good….but this good? The addition of Wes Welker to an already dynamic passing attack was just not fair. With Welker, DeMaryius Thomas, Eric Decker, and Julius Thomas, the Broncos have one of, if not the most dangerous arsenal of WRs in the league. The Manning-led Broncos have scored a league-high 127 points in three games (42.3 ppg), which is 31 more points than the second-highest scoring team in the Green Bay Packers. Manning’s numbers look like those from Madden where he’s playing teams at the rookie level. In week 1 against the Ravens, he threw for 462 yards and 7…let me spell that out for you, S-E-V-E-N, touchdowns. Last Monday night on Monday Night Football against the Oakland Pryor’s (Raiders), Manning went 32-of-37 for 374 yards and three touchdowns. In three games, he’s completed 73% of his passes for 1,143 yards and 12 touchdowns. He also hasn’t thrown a pick and retained bragging rights with his brother Eli. Need I say more?

2. Andy Reid and the 3-0 Kansas City Chiefs

Who saw this coming? The Chiefs – coming off a 2-14 campaign – added Alex Smith at QB and Andy Reid as their new head coach. How exactly are they winning? They’re taking care of the football – no turnovers in three games – and are playing admirably on defense. Their defense has allowed 32 points in three games. The other two points the Chiefs allowed came on a safety, the only points the Jacksonville Jaguars scored in KC’s week one 28-2 victory. They held both the Cowboys and Eagles to 16 points each, and forced Chip Kelly’s Eagles into five turnovers. At 3-0, the Chiefs already have more wins than they did all of last year. How long will it last?

3. Ryan Tannehill and the 3-0 Miami Dolphins

I know very little about the Miami Dolphins. What I do know is that they are 3-0 and Ryan Tannehill is their starting quarterback. They opened with wins on the road in Cleveland (23-10) and Indianapolis (24-20) before returning home and delivering a come-from-behind 27-23 victory over the Atlanta Falcons. I’m impressed, but I’m not sold on them…yet. Statistically, the Dolphins don’t (and won’t) wow you. They are 14^th in the league in passing yards (249 ypg) and 28^th in rushing (70.3 ypg). Looking at their schedule, they have favorable matchups against the Bills (twice), Jets (twice), and the hapless Steelers. If they can get to 10 wins, a playoff berth isn’t out of question. They get a chance to show the nation they’re for real on MNF next week on the road against the undefeated New Orleans Saints.

Three Down

1. Eli Manning and the 0-3 New York Giants

What’s it like being the little brother, Eli? Eli’s G-Men are 0-3 in the dismal NFC East and were just shut out 38-0 by Carolina. An offense with WRs Victor Cruz and Hakeem Nicks should never get shut out, especially against the Panthers of all teams. They have given up a NFL-most 115 points in three games and have turned it over a league-high 13 times. Eli Manning has thrown eight interceptions and is nowhere close to the talent of his brother Peyton in Denver.

2. Ben Roethlisberger and the 0-3 Pittsburgh Steelers

The Steelers are football’s version of the New York Yankees. They have a young coach, but the players are old, underperforming, and are destined down a path of destruction. They are weak at running back (Jonathan Dwyer and Felix Jones won’t cut it nowadays) leaving it all up to Big Ben to make plays for a hapless offense. While he has his fair share of success, Antonio Brown being his best target is worrisome. It may be a long football season in Pittsburgh, but at least the Pirates will be playing in October, right?

3. Maurice Jones-Drew and the 0-3 Jacksonville Jaguars

They were expected to be bad…but this bad? Actually, yes, yes they were. MJD was coming off a 2012 injury, Blaine Gabbert was still (no longer is) the starting QB, and well, it’s the Jaguars. Have the Jaguars ever been good? That’s a serious question. OK, they made the playoffs in 2007 but that seems like forever ago. Their current offense has scored three touchdowns, and they’ve held one lead all season long – a brief 2-0 cushion over the Chiefs in a game that they eventually lost 28-2. They need a legitimate QB…badly. Heck, they need a lot more than that. At least the 2014 NFL Draft is only 225 days away.

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I’m predicting a good season for the Kansas City Chiefs. You can thank the acquisition of quarterback Alex Smith for that. With the acquisition of quarterback Alex Smith it is just a sign that Chiefs’ Star Wide Receiver, Dwayne Bowe is going to have a great 2013 season. We just might see the Dwayne Bowe from the 2010 season where he had 72 receptions, 1,162 receiving yards, and 15 receiving touchdowns.

Although most are saying that this might not be such a great year for Alex Smith because the way Matt Cassel played as the quarterback of the Kansas Chiefs, and how his production decline throughout the years. When you look at the Smith is already looking like he should do better than Cassel. When Cassel had a great season the next year he had a mediocre season. Then after that he had a phenomena season in his second year in Kansas City where he threw 27 touchdowns, only 7 interceptions, threw for 3,116 passing yard, and had a quarterback rating of a 93. After that Cassel number just been decreasing/ Compare to Alex Smith, although he haven’t had a breakout year like Cassel did in 2010 he has been increasing his number every year since 2009.

Because of Matt Cassel struggles, that caused Chiefs’ star wide receiver stats to go down. The same year when Cassel had that breakout season was the same season when Dwayne Bowe had a breakout season as well. With Smith improving every season, that only means that Dwayne Bowe would have another breakout season this year. With Smith under center Bowe is most likely going to be a pro bowl wide out for the second time in his five year career. This maybe will be one of the best receiver and quarterback duo in the NFL next season. It is clear that Bowe is the best receiver on the Chiefs team, since his first 3 years in the league he was second in receiving on because that’s when they had Tony Gonzalez. Ever since 2009, Bowe has been leading his team in every single receiving category. As long as Alex Smith has a great year, Dwayne Bowe would have a fantastic season.

Now we have to wait until training camp starts, to find out whether or not these two stars can work together here in Kansas City. With this move it’s bring high hope to the Kansas City organization. Hopefully they want let Kansas City down again next season.

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