With the Pro Bowl taking center stage this week, this gives us a little time to look back on the year that was in the NFL. Today’s “No Huddle” will look at my preseason predictions prior to Week 1, and I’ll be handing out my picks for the NFL awards. It was another exciting year of football, and I still can’t believe that Super Bowl LI is only eleven days away.

Reviewing my predictions wasn’t easy, especially knowing all year that I totally blew it with my Super Bowl pick (Thanks a lot Cardinals). Arizona, Carolina, and Denver, three of the powers from a season ago, totally fell apart in 2016 and failed to capitalize on the momentum they built from a season ago. I may have gotten seven out of the twelve playoff teams correct, but the NFC was a total crapshoot. I nailed most of the AFC, getting all four division winners right but missed both wild card teams.

Dallas, Oakland, and Miami came out of nowhere this season to make a playoff run. Derek Carr’s MVP-level season carried Oakland to the precipice of the AFC West title and a first round bye before breaking his leg on Christmas Eve. Miami rode a big winning streak in the middle of the season and snuck into the playoffs as the #6 seed in the AFC. Then there was Dallas. I thought the Tony Romo injury would’ve killed the Cowboys this season. Little did I, or anyone else, know that Dak Prescott would have the best rookie year ever for a quarterback and lead Dallas to the top seed in the NFC.

Unfortunately, that is the way that things go in the NFL. Injuries and questionable offseason moves can crush a great team while the unexpected heroes can elevate a middling team into the playoffs. Here is a quick look at my preseason playoff picks and the way things actually went (my picks in Italics):

NFC East – Dallas, 13-3 (NY Giants, 10-6)

NFC North – Green Bay, 10-6 (Green Bay, 13-3)

NFC South – Atlanta, 11-5 (Carolina, 12-4)

NFC West – Seattle, 10-5-1 (Arizona, 12-4)

Wild Cards – NY Giants, 11-5, Detroit, 9-7 (Seattle, 11-5, Tampa Bay, 10-6)

 

AFC East – New England, 14-2 (New England, 11-5)

AFC North – Pittsburgh, 11-5 (Pittsburgh, 12-4)

AFC South – Houston, 9-7 (Houston, 10-6)

AFC West – Kansas City, 12-4 (Kansas City, 11-5)

Wild Cards – Oakland, 12-4, Miami 10-6 (Denver, 10-6, Cincinnati, 10-6)

NFC Championship – Atlanta over Green Bay (Arizona over Green Bay)

AFC Championship – New England over Pittsburgh (NE over Pittsburgh)

Super Bowl LI – Atlanta vs. New England (Arizona over NE)

I would say my biggest oversight this year was not trusting the Atlanta Falcons. The signs were there for this offense to be prolific. They signed an All-Pro center to anchor the offensive line in Alex Mack, as well as signing Mohamed Sanu to upgrade the receiving corps. Taylor Gabriel was a real surprise in this offense and added another guy who can score from anywhere on the field. However, I did not see this defense holding up its end of the bargain considering Atlanta would be using primarily rookies and second-year players (seven out of the eleven starters in fact).

One of my main concerns heading into this season was the play of Matt Ryan. Last season he was atrocious in the redzone, throwing almost as many interceptions as touchdowns. I noted in the preseason that he would need to improve exponentially in that area for this team to succeed and prevent another second-half collapse like in 2015. Not only did Ryan clean things up in the redzone, but also he improved his numbers across the board in 2016. It is not hard to figure out why the Falcons will be playing in the Super Bowl in a week and a half. This brings me to my picks for the NFL Awards.

Most Valuable Player – Matt Ryan, QB, Atlanta Falcons

The minute Derek Carr went down with a broken leg, this pick became a no-brainer for me. You could make a case for Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers, but this was Matt Ryan’s year. His numbers were gaudy in 2016 and that might be an understatement.

Ryan completed 69.9 percent of his passes while throwing for 4,944 yards, 38 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Year two in the Kyle Shanahan offense certainly suited Ryan well as he set new career highs in all of the major passing statistics and a career low in interceptions. A deeper look at Ryan’s stats really shows how impressive his season was in 2016.

“Matty Ice” averaged 309.0 passing yards per game with a passer rating of 117.1, both are new career bests for the former Boston College star. The numbers that really jumped out at me were his 7.1 TD percentage on passing attempts, and the 10.1 adjusted yards per attempt (the adjustment accounts for deep passes and INTs).

Offensive Player of the Year – David Johnson, RB, Arizona Cardinals

There is a strong chance that this award goes to Ezekiel Elliott when the AP hands out these awards, but for my money David Johnson should win this award. His 2016 season encapsulates why this award exists. Surpassing 2,000 all-purpose yards is an impressive feat and Johnson should be rewarded for that effort. Just look at this stat line and then try to explain to me how anyone else was the offensive player of the year in 2016.

1,239 rushing yards, 4.2 yards per carry, 16 rushing touchdowns, 80 catches, 879 receiving yards, 11.0 yards per reception, and four receiving touchdowns.

No alternative facts here, that is sheer production. The preseason comparisons to Marshall Faulk from Arizona’s general manager definitely weren’t off the mark.

Defensive Player of the Year – Von Miller, LB/DE, Denver Broncos

This was a very difficult award to pick for 2016. There was really no one that stood out during the final month of the regular season. That isn’t to say that there weren’t a bunch of guys deserving of this award. Khalil Mack, Landon Collins, and Vic Beasley will all garner well-deserved praise but I’m going to go with Von Miller here. 13.5 sacks and 24 quarterback knockdowns were enough to make Miller one of the most effective and disruptive pass rushers in the NFL in 2016. A sack-less December might cost him this award amongst the sportswriters, but in a year where no one really took this race by storm, Miller should finally get his first DPOY award.

Comeback Player of the Year – Jordy Nelson, WR, Green Bay Packers

Tearing an ACL at the age of 30 should have been the end of Jordy Nelson as an elite wide receiver in the NFL. However, Nelson had other ideas and picked up his career right where he left off following a terrific 2014. It took some time to get back in the flow of the offense but once he did, the Rodgers-Nelson connection was back to being unstoppable once again. Nelson led the league in receiving touchdowns with 14 and caught 97 passes for 1,257 yards. Not too shabby for a 31-year old receiver coming off of reconstructive knee surgery.

Offensive Rookie of the Year – Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Dallas Cowboys

This is really a two-horse race between both of the Dallas rookies. While this rookie class was incredibly productive across the board, Elliott and Dak Prescott are head and shoulders above the rest. That being said, I’m going with the guy that ran like a thoroughbred all season long. Elliott was the NFL’s leading rusher in 2016, and is looking like a once-in-a-generation talent. There is no question that Prescott deserves this award, but the production from Elliott was too good to ignore.

Defensive Rookie of the Year – Joey Bosa, DE, San Diego Chargers

It is a strange trend that both defensive awards are tough to pick due to the lack of standout and consistent defensive performances. However, Joey Bosa seems like the most deserving candidate for this award. A contract dispute forced him to miss most of training camp, and an injury forced him to miss an early portion of the season. But once Bosa got into the lineup in October, he immediately began to make an impact for the Chargers defense. Four sacks in his first three games was one hell of a way to make a debut. Bosa did have a quiet stretch in the middle of the season, but he closed the season with an impressive stretch. He finished the season with at least one sack in his final five games to finish the year with 10.5 sacks (five short of league leader Vic Beasley).

Coach of the Year – Jack Del Rio, Oakland Raiders

Okay, now this award is likely going to Jason Garrett for obvious reasons (nurturing a fifth round pick as the starting quarterback, going 13-3 with him, etc.). Plus, Bill Belichick has already reached the level where he could win this award every year and no one would bat an eye but where would the fun be in that.

I’m going to give some credit where credit is due though. Jack Del Rio helped turn a 7-9 team in 2015 into a 12-4 team that had a legitimate shot to make a deep run in the playoffs before losing its MVP candidate at quarterback.

I don’t there was a coach in the league who routinely would risk it all more than Del Rio in 2016. He did it though to instill a belief in his young team that they could compete with the rest of the NFL. Week 1 on the road in New Orleans, he knew that when they scored, they were going for the win. That comeback victory sparked something in this Raiders team, and it wouldn’t be the last time that Del Rio would make a ballsy call that paid off either. He has Oakland ready to be a perennial contender from 2017 and beyond.

That’s it for me today, I’ll have a new edition of “Heat Check” up Friday. I’ll be out covering St. Augustine vs. Millville tomorrow, which you can watch on SNJToday.com. Follow me on Twitter @thereal_jmooney and go like the Shooting the Moon page on Facebook.