Comeback Player of The Year

In October, 2017, Jimmy Garoppolo was traded by the Patriots to the 49ers. ‘Jimmy G’ won his first five starts which happened to be the last five games of the season for the 49ers. The newly acquired quarterback had the city of San Francisco excited for things to come.

Week 3 of the 2018 season, the 49ers plan and season went sideways when Garoppolo tore his ACL. The 49ers season was derailed, and Garoppolo’s presumed breakout campaign was over before it really got started.

For this upcoming 2019 season, I believe Jimmy will win comeback player of the year. Garappolo is back healthy and returned to play against the Broncos on Monday night football, week 2 of the preseason. For Jimmy it was a rough outing against Denver but that’s expected coming off a ACL.

The improved 49ers squad with head coach & quarterback guru, Kyle Shanahan, may compete for a division title this season. The 49ers have won 6 and 4 games the last two years, so even a 9-7 record would be a big national story and Jimmy G would most likely get the majority of the credit. If Garapollo can pass for around 4,000 yards and 25 touchdowns, the award is his to lose.

It’s important to note this award typically goes to a quarterback and I believe Jimmy has the best chance.

Defensive Rookie of The Year

As a lifelong, die-hard Denver Bronco fan, it irks me to say Devin Bush is my selection for NFL rookie defensive player of the year.

Sitting at pick #10 during the 2019 NFL draft, the Denver Broncos had Devin Bush right there for the taking at a position the Broncos are the weakest at. It seemed to be a match-made in heaven until commissioner Roger Goodell, announced a trade went down. The Broncos ultimately flipped their #10 pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers, for the Steelers #20 overall pick, the #52 overall pick (2nd round), and a 2020 3rd round pick.

Devin Bush is a three-down linebacker with great quickness and athleticism. His 4.43, 40 yard dash at the NFL combine was 2nd in the linebacking group. Devin White, who was drafted a few picks earlier ran a 4.42, beating Bush by just a tenth of a second. Devin Bush speed was good enough to be top 20 overall at the combine, a unbelievable stat for a linebacker.

Devin Bush will be flying around the field making plays everywhere this season.

Pittsburgh’s defense took a huge hit when they lost the heart and soul of their team. Ryan Shazier suffered a tragic spinal injury back in 2017 that will most likely end his career. With that in mind, the Steelers filled a pressing need, getting great value by trading up for Bush, who plays the same position as Shazier. Bush is a plug-and-play starter who can easily get over 110+ tackles if he stays healthy for a full season.

Offensive Rookie of The Year

The last two seasons, the NFL rookie offensive player of the year award went to 1st round running backs. (Barkley, Kamara). In 2016, the award went to a mid-round draft pick (Dak Prescott) and surprising to most, I believe another mid round draft pick will win the award in 2019.

David Montgomery, rookie 3rd round selection out of Iowa State looks to be the main ball carrier for the Bears, sharing time with Tarik Cohen, one of the leagues most explosive players. Montgomery is a big, yet shifty runner that can sift through traffic running between the tackles. Montgomery runs with great balance and catches the ball out the backfield as well.

In 2018, the Bears running backs averaged just 3.8 yards per carry so they traded Jordan Howard to the Eagles. Montgomery will replace Howard and the Bears are trying to compete for a Super Bowl this season.

If Montgomery rushes for 1100-1200 yards and 6+ TD’s, I believe that’s enough production to win offensive rookie of the year, especially if the Bears are a playoff team like they were last season.

NFL Offensive Player of The Year

I predicted the Los Angeles Chargers to finish as the #1 seed in the AFC, and Philip Rivers is the main reason why I think they will be that successful.

The 37 year-old quarterback is entering his 16th season of NFL action and is desperate to reach a Super Bowl for the first time.

Never a mobile quarterback, Rivers knows how to slide around the pocket and create time for his receivers to get open and for him to shot-put his throws. His funky throwing motion is slower than most, but the 8-time pro bowler is skilled and savvy enough to still be deadly accurate and productive.

Rivers is on track to join Brees and Peyton Manning as the only quarterbacks in NFL history with at least 10 seasons of 4,000 yards passing or more.

The Chargers and Rivers have drawn a lot of attention this off-season. Rivers was a candidate for the MVP award last season but was overshadowed by Patrick Mahomes and Drew Brees. If Rivers puts up similar numbers this season and the Chargers win the AFC, he could receive enough votes to win Offensive player of the year.

The only thing that has eluded Rivers in his career is a Super Bowl ring. The quest for one could be the motivation for him to keep going and have a great 2019 campaign.

NFL DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

There’s only a few current players in the NFL that are already considered Canton bound, that haven’t won Defensive player of the year yet. One is Bobby Wagner, superstar linebacker for the Seattle Seahawks and my pick for 2019 defensive player of the year Von Miller.

Von can be described as a explosive technically sound edge rusher. His outstanding speed and elite first step, typically leaves offensive tackles in the dust. Miller has a plethora of rush moves and will throw a counter move when the offensive lineman thinks he has Von figured out. Von has terrific range and is tenacious when getting after the quarterback. Vic Fangio, new Broncos head coach wants Von to become a compete player. Fangio plans on dropping Von into more zone coverages and he wants to use Miller’s fluid athleticism to potentially cover some running backs and tight ends.

Besides 2013, Von Miller has been an All-Pro in some form every year of his career. In 2018, he was voted a 2nd team All-Pro at both defensive end and linebacker. In the last two seasons, Miller has posted 105 combined tackles, 24.5 sacks, six forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries.

Von Miller is regarded as one of the best players in the regardless of position but has yet to win defensive player of the year. Even though the Broncos aren’t expected to contend for a championship this year, the combination of Von Miller and Bradley Chubb will almost certainly make Denver’s defense very dangerous. I think the combination of those two players can easily get over 35 sacks in 2019.

NFL MVP

2019 is the year of the ‘Brees’.

It’s hard to believe Drew Brees has yet to win an MVP award during his tenure with the New Orleans Saints. I believe 2019 is the year that changes.

Quarterback is arguably the most important position in sports. Drew Brees has broken countless franchise records, been to various pro bowls and has a Super Bowl MVP under his belt. The only accolade Brees hasn’t accomplished is the NFL regular season MVP.

Drew Brees is definitely due.

Now at 40 years-old, can Brees get the job done in 2019? In 2018 Brees had the numbers worthy of a MVP award. He finished the season with the highest completion percentage of his career and was tied for the second fewest interceptions in his hall of fame career. Brees also threw for 32 touchdowns, averaging 8 yards per attempt, for a little under 4,000 yards. Brees helped lead the team to some dynamic wins and even a few comebacks. Whether it’s throwing risky passes with precision and deadly accuracy, or scrambling a few yards for a key first down, Brees was always reliable when the team needed him. Brees stood up and answered the bell.

Despite the loss of Mark Ingram, the Saints offense still should be explosive and especially deadly at home in the dome. Michael Thomas and Alvin Kamara give Brees two threats that are game breakers and can turn a 5 yard screen pass to a 80 yard house-call.

Many are speculating on a down year for the 40 year-old quarterback and it could very well happen. We saw a minor decline in his play midseason 2018 but Brees was still in the MVP conversation. I have the Saints winning the NFC, making a run all the way to the Super Bowl. But even if they don’t get that far Drew Brees deserves recognition for helping the Saints win. He’s gotten overlooked for so many years that 2019 could be the year the voters select Drew Brees as MVP.