The 2015 NFL Honors Awards Show is in the books, with a new set of players taking home the most prestigious awards of the NFL season and a new class for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. This is the fourth year they’ve went with the NFL Honors show format and it’s proving to be very popular -- though all of the announcements come out prior to it actually airing, as media tweets from the taping of the show an hour before.
NFL Awards 2015: Aaron Rodgers, J.J. Watt take home honors
Among the players who took home awards at the NFL Honors Awards Show on Saturday are J.J. Watt, DeMarco Murray and Rob Gronkowski. The league also announced the newest class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
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Whatever the case, we’ve got a full recap of the winners below:
AP Most Valuable Player
It's not a surprise to see Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers named the league's Most Valuable Player. It may be an award that's slanted toward offensive players, but Rodgers didn't just have an OK season -- he stood out among great quarterbacks with an impossibly high touchdown to interception ratio (38 touchdowns, just five interceptions). Someone like Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt may be deserving of the award as well, but there's no real argument against Rodgers in the end.
AP Offensive Player of the Year
Dallas Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray didn't break the regular season rushing record, but he was still far and away the best running back in the league this year. He was on pace to break that record for much of the season, and was the most important player on that Dallas roster, which is why he won the Offensive Player of the Year award.
AP Defensive Player of the Year
Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt took home the Defensive Player of the Year honors, to nobody's surprise. There was talk about Justin Houston potentially sneaking in there, but he didn't even get any votes. Watt was voted in unanimously, the first time that has ever happened with this particular award. Plenty of players have won the award handily, but Watt ran away with it. The guy is a defensive end, yet he accounted for 32 total points -- it's no shocker to see him win this.
AP Offensive Rookie of the Year
If Watt was a shoo-in for defensive player of the year, then Odell Beckham Jr. taking home the Offensive Rookie of the Year award has to get the same designation. The guy didn’t just post incredible stats for a player who missed four games this past season, he made an incredible catch just about every single game. The 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns were nice and all, but if you watched the NFL this season and can’t recall a ridiculous Beckham catch, you’ve got a problem.
AP Defensive Rookie of the Year
St. Louis Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald brought home the Defensive Rookie of the Year award, after being a standout player on an already strong defensive line. Donald was brought in for depth, at least initially, but once he played his way onto the field, he made a huge difference. He made the Rams a much better team and was great at everything he did, allowing Gregg Williams to do more and more with him up front. Khalil Mack definitely deserved some consideration, but nobody will call this an upset.
AP Coach of the Year
Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians definitely has a talented roster to work with, but he overcame an awful lot to have the Cardinals competitive in 2014. But he did much more than make them competitive, which is why he won the Coach of the Year award. Despite having multiple injuries at the quarterback position, the Cardinals were consistently among the league's best teams and were in the running for the NFC's top seed right up into the final game of the regular season.
AP Comeback Player of the Year
There were a couple players in the discussion for this award, but New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski is the AP Comeback Player of the Year for 2014-15. Gronkowski had multiple injuries last season and was a big question mark even heading into this year. But he started in Week 1, as the Patriots said he would, and he had an incredible season. Rolando McClain may have his career on the right track, but Gronkowski was a game-changer for the Patriots, who will play in the Super Bowl on Sunday.
Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2015
The Pro Football Hall of Fame inducted its Class of 2015 on Saturday, making Jerome Bettis, Charles Haley, Tim Brown, Junior Seau and Will Shields its modern player inductees. Executives Bill Polian and Ron Wolf were both inducted as contributors, and Mick Tingelhoff was the Seniors Committee inductee. They will be enshrined in Canton in August, before the NFL's Hall of Fame game.
Other Awards
FedEx Air & Ground Players of the Year: Aaron Rodgers, Le'Veon Bell
Salute To Service Award Presented: Jared Allen
Art Rooney Award: Larry Fitzgerald
Don Shula HS Coach of the Year: Bruce Larson, Somerset (Wisconsin) High School
"Greatness on the Road" Award: Tony Romo
NFL.com Fantasy Player of the Year: LeVeon Bell
Deacon Jones Award: Justin Houston
Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year: Thomas Davis
Bridgestone Performance Play of the Year: This catch by Odell Beckham Jr.
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