2022 Season Awards Tournament: MVP, ROY, DPOY, COY (AFC West)
Each year, I go division by division and nominate who I believe is each team’s candidate for the major NFL awards and then we discuss/declare who the division’s major award winner is for the season…and that player goes onto the divisional Final Four with a chance to go to the Super Bowl/Finals for a chance to be declared my seasonal award winner.
We go division-by-division each day, then to the Final Four for each conference, then the finals to name our winner the day the NFL announces their winners. *And my choices are usually different up and down the line in each category, so enjoy a different take on the NFL awards.
*MVP (any position)
*Coach of the Year (any coach on the staff, not just the head coach)
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2022 Season Awards Tournament: MVP
AFC West
KC: QB Patrick Mahomes
LAC: QB Justin Herbert
LV: WR Davante Adams
DEN: CB Patrick Surtain
Justin Herbert was put in a box late season, by his own awful (now fired) O-C…so, not Herbert this season.
Pat Surtain was good, but not quite MVP level.
Davante Adams is ridiculously good, but I cannot justify putting him over Patrick Mahomes for MVP. Mahomes is helping gloss over a lot of bad offensive coaching and planning. You gotta go Mahomes here.
AFC West Winner = Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City, who now moves onto the AFC Final Four.
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2022 Season Awards Tournament: Rookie of the Year
AFC West
KC: RB Isiah Pacheco
LAC: OL Jamaree Salyer
LV: OL Dylan Parham
DEN: TE Greg Dulcich
Salyer had to start 14 games this season due to injury to the starters, and he accounted for himself well, but he was not a star, per se. Parham started 17 games for LV, but he graded out lower than Salyer did this season.
Dulcich was solid in a couple game run midseason…but missed the start of the season due to injury and ended it short on an injury.
Pacheco went from 7th-round RB to rostered to in-the-rotation to split starter to main starter this season…the lead back for the KC Chiefs, who woulda thunk it? I mean, besides me in May 2022. It’s an easy choice for this division…
AFC West Winner = RB Isiah Pacheco, KC now goes on to the AFC Final Four.
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2022 Season Awards Tournament: Defensive Player of the Year
AFC West
KC: DT Chris Jones
LAC: CB Asante Samuel
LV: DE Maxx Crosby
DEN: CB Patrick Surtain
Let’s pit the DLs against each other and then the CBs against each other, then let the winners go head-to-head for the AFC West title…
Samuel and Surtain both had nice 2nd seasons in the NFL. Surtain was a little better to my eye…on the better defense, and his stats against are slightly better. Surtain move on.
Crosby had his best NFL season yet…12.5 sacks, 22 TFLs, 35 QB hits, 3 FF
But Chris Jones was pretty ridiculous too…15.5 sacks, 17 TFLs, 29 QB hits, 2 FF
Both were so good, but Jones putting up this numbers playing DT mostly…it’s a ‘wow’ season.
Jones or Surtain? Both are worthy. I guess I’ll decide it by who I would rather have on my roster for the 2022 season, which guy was really the most important? I’m going to lean Surtain because his overall defense was better…and both defenses had talent, but Surtain’s impact led to better overall defensive numbers for the team…so Surtain by a hair.
AFC West Winner = CB Patrick Surtain, DEN moves on to the AFC Final Four.
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2022 Season Awards Tournament: Coach of the Year
AFC West
KC: HC Andy Reid
LAC: HC Brandon Staley
LV: DC Patrick Graham
DEN: DC Ejiro Evero
The two D-Cs were the best of bad options from their teams, but they can’t be the winners here. It comes down to the two head coaches.
I’m not enamored with either of these guys, but…Brandon Staley, to me, did more harm than good to this team. They should’ve been so much better the past two years. Sticking by that disaster O-C was a killer…and not COY worthy.
Andy Reid wins by default. I have to give him credit for winning the division, easily, again…and keeping up the offense without Tyreek Hill and with awful JuJu/MVS. Mahomes is actually the Coach of the Year, he ‘fixes’ everything…but he’s not a coach, so we give it to Reid. Also, Reid had the best acting in a commercial of any AFC West coach in 2022…
AFC West Winner = HC Andy Reid, KC moves on to the AFC Final Four.
