NFL Analysis
Predictions for NFL Honors: Award Winners and Hall of Fame Class of 2025
At last season’s NFL Honors, the National Football League’s top individual awards were presented. Will there be repeat winners from the 2024 season? Can Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson take home a third NFL MVP? Could Cleveland’s Kevin Sefanski join Bill Belichick as the NFL’s only three-time NFL Coach of the Year recipients? Who will be the NFL’s top rookies?
No preseason predictions were made on Patriots Football Now last season. Votes were cast before the ceremony, but only four of the seven major awards went to players receiving my votes. Will my preseason picks fare any better than my postseason votes? Stay tuned.
The awards will go to:
Most Valuable Player
2023 Winner: QB Lamar Jackson, Ravens
2024 Prediction: QB Josh Allen, Bills
Jackson will be great again, no question about it. So will fellow two-time MVP Patrick Mahomes (Chiefs). But the prediction here is that Josh Allen becomes a first-time honoree. If the Buffalo Bills are an elite team this season it means Allen had an unbelievable season. He lost Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis in the offseason. So if the Bills excel, as I project them to do, the bulk of the credit will deservedly go to their star quarterback.
Offensive Player of the Year
2023 Winner: RB Christian McCaffrey, 49ers
2024 Prediction: WR Ja’Marr Chase, Bengals
Once again, McCaffrey should have a monster season for San Francisco. Several wide receivers could garner attention for this honor as well. Tyreek Hill (Dolphins), CeeDee Lamb (Cowboys), Justin Jefferson (Vikings), and Amon-Ra St. Brown (Lions) are among the wideouts being discussed. The nod here goes to Chase. If he and Joe Burrow remain on the field for the entire season, good things will happen for Cincinnati, with Chase capable of monster numbers.
JA'MARR CHASE CANNOT BE STOPPED. #RuleTheJungle
📺: #BALvsCIN on CBS
📱: NFL app pic.twitter.com/CUraDu6WvG— NFL (@NFL) October 24, 2021
Defensive Player of the Year
2023 Winner: DE Myles Garrett, Browns
2024 Prediction: LB Micah Parsons, Cowboys
The top three defenders on my DPOY ballot last season were Garrett, Parsons, and T.J. Watt (Steelers). Watt received my vote, but Garrett received the award. These three should all be in the mix once again this season. Among the others worthy of consideration are Nick Bosa (49ers), Aidan Hutchinson (Lions), Chris Jones (Chiefs), and Josh Hines-Allen (Jaguars). Unless a defensive back emerges with big stats on a playoff team (Dolphins’ Jalen Ramsey or the Jets’ Sauce Gardner, perhaps), a front-seven player who puts up big sack totals will likely win again in 2024. Micah Parsons is the bet here.
Offensive Rookie of the Year
2023 Winner: QB C.J. Stroud, Texans
2024 Prediction: WR Brian Thomas Jr., Jaguars
Three rookie quarterbacks are starting in Week 1 for their respective teams. Caleb Williams (Bears), Jayden Daniels (Commanders), and Bo Nix (Broncos) are all strong candidates simply by being on the field and playing the league’s premier position. Williams has the most offensive weapons around him out of the three, making him an attractive option. Three premier wide receivers went Top 10 in April’s draft. Marvin Harrison Jr. (Cardinals), Malik Nabers (Giants), and Rome Odunze (Bears) are all elite prospects. However, the nod here goes to Brian Thomas Jr., who could become the top option for Trevor Lawrence in Jacksonville. Thomas could be in the best situation of anyone to make an immediate impact. Brock Bowers (Raiders) and Keon Coleman (Bills) could contend too.
Defensive Rookie of the Year
2023 Winner: Will Anderson Jr., Texans
2024 Prediction: Laiatu Latu, Colts
Winners of awards usually put up big numbers. It is why I lean toward a polished pass rusher like Latu here. Jared Verse (Vikings) and Jared Verse (Rams) would not be surprising winners either. While players like DT Byron Murphy II (Seahawks) and Nate Wiggins (Ravens) are likely to produce immediately, they may not have the statistics to garner enough votes.
The rookie @laiatu_latu gets home 😤#INDvsCIN on Prime Video
Also stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/fa4u5s0tMy— NFL (@NFL) August 23, 2024
Comeback Player of the Year
2023 Winner: Joe Flacco, Browns
2024 Prediction: Joe Burrow, Bengals
Predicting the next Joe Flacco is too tough of a task. Three more likely candidates are quarterbacks Joe Burrow (Bengals), Aaron Rodgers (Jets), and Cousins. Rodgers will likely be the popular choice. He suffered a season-ending injury in Week 1 last season. He returns to lead a New York Jets team that missed out on the playoffs in 2023. If Rodgers leads the Jets to the playoffs and plays well, this award is likely his. However, both Burrow and Cousins went down mid-season and are both projected (by me) to lead their teams to the playoffs in 2024. Burrow gets the nod, becoming the first two-time winner since Chad Pennington.
Coach of the Year
2023 Winner: Kevin Stefanski, Browns
2024 Prediction: Andy Reid, Chiefs
Generally, this award goes to the coach of the team that exceeds expectations by the most. Coaches of teams expected to win a lot are generally not considered for the honor, with minor exceptions. However, Andy Reid’s latest Super Bowl win has put him among the elite head coaches in NFL history. His only Coach of the Year honor came in 2002 with the Philadelphia Eagles. If Kansas City has a monster regular season (15-2), Reid will win for the second time. If it once against goes to the “exceeded expectations” candidate, based on my preseason predictions the award would go to Doug Pederson of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Pro Football Hall of Fame, Modern Era Candidates
2024 Inductees: Dwight Freeney, Devin Hester, Andre Johnson, Julius Peppers, Patrick Willis
2025 Prediction: Antonio Gates, Rodney Harrison, Eli Manning, Adam Vinatieri, Reggie Wayne
This group came shockingly easy. Last season, I thought Gates, Harrison, and Wayne were all bound for Canton. Since none of them were part of the Class of 2024, I’m betting they get in this season. Eli Manning is bound to generate some controversy but will get in on his first try, nonetheless. The original New England Patriots dynasty, currently represented by only Ty Law and Richard Seymour in the Hall of Fame, will add two new members in Rodney Harrison and Adam Vinatieri.
There are plenty of other former NFL stars worthy of induction, including Vince Wilfork, Torry Holt, Willie Anderson, Jared Allen, Luke Kuechly, Darren Woodson, and others. Which ones will get their gold jackets in 2025? And how many of these other NFL Honors predictions will prove accurate? In about five months we’ll have our answers.
