A different take on the major NFL seasonal awards through a tournament style process/discussion...
2025 Season Awards Tournament: OPOY, OROY, DPOY, COY (NFC North)
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.
*Coach of the Year (any coach on the staff, not just the head coach)
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NFC North: 2025 Season Awards Tournament: Offensive Player of the Year
CHI: QB Caleb Williams, CHI
DET: WR Amon-Ra St. Brown, DET
GB: RB Josh Jacobs, GB
MIN: WR Justin Jefferson, MIN
The reason the legacy guys are on here is that they WERE their team’s primary offensive weapon. Judging them for 2025, I’d say ARSB #1, Jacobs #2, JJ #3...among that group. But the player that was clearly better/more valuable than all of them in 2025 was Caleb Williams. This is a no brainer.
NFC North Winner = QB Caleb Williams, CHI
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NFC North: 2025 Season Awards Tournament: Rookie of the Year
CHI: TE Colston Loveland, CHI
DET: OG Tate Ratledge, DET
GB: OT Anthony Belton, GB
MIN: OG Donovan Jackson, MIN
Of the O-Line options here, Tate Ratledge is the winner -- he was 12th in run blocking grades among all guards, 2nd among rookie guards. Played/started 17 games due to the Lions OL issues right out of the gates in 2025.
How do you evaluate a solid OL versus a TE we see/know more of in Loveland, who was quiet for half a season and then exploded/popped after that? Well, I decided to choose to award the victory by asking myself, if I had to pick one or the other...as an NFL GM, who would I pick? The choice was then clear...you take the legit Guard over the standard issue ‘good’ TE.
This isn’t Fantasy Football awards...it’s the NFL Awards.
NFC North Winner = OG Tate Ratledge, DET
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NFC North: 2025 Season Awards Tournament: Defensive Player of the Year
CHI: SAF Kevin Byard, CHI
DET: DE Aidan Hutchinson, DET
GB: EDGE Micah Parsons, GB
MIN: LB Eric Wilson, MIN
Hutch wins the battle of EDGEs with a full season played...they had similar stats, roughly, per game. Edge to Hutchinson for playing all the games.
Eric Wilson had more TFLs than either Hutch or Micah. And he wasn’t even intended to be the starter for the defensive genius Brian Flores...but injury launched him into the starting lineup and there was no turning back for THE 31-YEAR OLD LINEBACKER NO TEAM WANTED for most of his 10+ year career...and the player the Packers let go in free agency in 2025 even though he was a near league minimum contract player. Jeff Hafley...new Dolphins head coach, ladies and gentlemen...
Eric Wilson was my highest graded rookie LB the year he came out of Cincinnati...2017...he went undrafted...now look at the ‘too old’ linebacker no team ever wants...our NFC North Defensive Player of the Year.
Perhaps someone is arguably better from this division, or his own team...but I’m giving it to Wilson out of spite/contempt for the NFL...and contempt for those ridiculously high paid EDGE rushers who won zero playoff games this year.
NFC North Winner = LB Eric Wilson, MIN
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NFC North: 2025 Season Awards Tournament: Coach of the Year
CHI: HC Ben Johnson, CHI
DET: HC Ben Johnson, CHI (formerly of DET)
GB: D-C Jeff Hafley, GB
MIN: D-C Brian Flores, MIN
Yes, Ben Johnson twice...he proved, or the Lions 2025 proved, that Ben Johnson was a major force behind the Lions excellence on offense (and the collapsed O-Line was a big deal too, for sure). And obviously he crushed it for Chicago this season. This isn’t even close...the other candidates don’t even belong on the same screen as Ben Johnson.
NFC North Winner = HC Ben Johnson, CHI
