Before the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers meet at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas for Super Bowl LVIII (Sunday, 6:30 p.m. ET, CBS), the NFL’s best gathered at the Resorts World Theater for Thursday’s NFL Honors. Happened.
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson captured his second MVP award after winning it in 2019. San Francisco’s star running back Christian McCaffrey won Offensive Player of the Year. Rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud of the Houston Texans received Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett won his first Defensive Player of the Year award. Texans defensive end Will Anderson Jr. won Defensive Rookie of the Year. Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski was named Coach of the Year for the second time. And Cleveland quarterback Joe Flacco was Comeback Player of the Year.
Here’s who won the award and why:
mvp
Lamar Jackson | QB | Baltimore Ravens
There were no surprises for the NFL’s biggest individual award: Jackson was named MVP after being the betting favorite for the previous six weeks.
Jackson joined a select group to win the NFL Most Valuable Player title for the second time. He became the fifth player to win multiple MVP awards in his first six seasons in the league. The others were Jim Brown, Kurt Warner, Brett Favre and Patrick Mahomes.
In leading the Ravens to an NFL-best 13-4 record, Jackson ranked in the top 10 in total QBR (64.7), yards per pass attempt (8.0) and touchdown-to-interception ratio (3.4) this season. He also led the NFL in yards per rush (5.5) – and not just among quarterbacks.
Remaining the NFL’s best dual threat, he totaled 3,678 passing yards and 821 rushing yards. He is the only player to have over 3,000 passing yards and 800 rushing yards multiple times, winning the MVP in both seasons (2019–20 and 2023–24).
Jackson overtook San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy as MVP favorite on Christmas, when he led Baltimore to a 33–19 win in San Francisco. He then essentially reaped the award in a 56–19 loss to the Miami Dolphins a week later, when he recorded a perfect passer rating (158.3) and threw five touchdown passes.
, jameson hensley
offensive player of the year
Christian McCaffrey | RB | san francisco 49ers
In his first full season with the Niners, McCaffrey delivered one of the most productive seasons in franchise and league history. He led the NFL in scrimmage yards per game (126.4), scrimmage touchdowns (21), rushing yards (1,459), first downs (114) and 10-plus yard runs (44) while playing 16 games.
Those numbers were enough to earn McCaffrey a Pro Bowl berth and first-team AP All Pro honors as he also added his name to the NFL record books. McCaffrey increased his total career games by rushing and receiving in the same game to 15, tied with Marshall Faulk for the most in league history, and tied for two in NFL history with over 2,000 scrimmage yards in a season. Became the third player to post. Various franchises.
Niners coach Kyle Shanahan said, “Everyone has gym rats that work very hard. … We got a guy who is one of the most talented guys in the league.” , nick wagner
Defensive Player of the Year
Miles Garrett DE | cleveland browns
After competing for the award for several years, Garrett was finally successful in earning his first NFL Defensive Player of the Year honor.
He finished just seventh with 14 sacks. But Garrett also led the NFL’s best regular season defense. The Browns led the league in defensive efficiency, yards allowed per game (267) and three-and-out rate (32.9%), in addition to several other categories. Garrett finished second in pass rush win rate (30.5%) despite facing the third-highest double-team rate (28.8%).
The Browns finished the year with four consecutive wins, culminating with a playoff win over the Jets on December 28. During that span, Garrett achieved 35 pass-rush victories; Only one other edge rusher had more than 20 (Pittsburgh’s TJ Watt had 26).
“I know the focus is on the number of sacks,” general manager Andrew Berry said. “It doesn’t really tell the whole story… He played at a very high level for us.” , jake trotter
Offensive Rookie of the Year
CJ Stroud | QB | houston texans
Stroud earned this award through the countless amateur records he set or set. The former Ohio State standout led the Texans to their first divisional title since 2019 and was the first quarterback taken in the top two of the draft to win a playoff game in his rookie season since 1967. That win also made him the youngest player to win a playoff event, surpassing Michael Vick.
Stroud set the record for most pass attempts without an interception to start a career (191). He maintained that pace and also led the league in touchdown-to-interception ratio (23:5).
He finished the regular season with 4,108 passing yards – third-most for a rookie behind Andrew Luck (4,374 in 2012) and Justin Herbert (4,336 in 2020). His highest passing mark was in Week 9 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when he threw for 470 yards, the highest passing mark ever by a rookie. , Dj Bien-Aime
Defensive Rookie of the Year
Will Anderson Jr. DE | houston texans
When Anderson came to Texas, he wanted to set a standard that rookies were here to “change the culture.” He was immediately impressive when he recorded a sack of Jackson in Week 1.
The sack count slowed down, but he was still at the top in advanced metrics. The No. 3 pick ranked third in pass rush win rate (25.8%). He also made an impact on the run game as he ranked sixth in run-stop win rate (36%) among defensive ends with at least 400 snaps.
He finished the season with 7 sacks, 10 tackles for loss and 22 QB hits, despite an ankle injury that caused him to miss two games. , Dj Bien-Aime
coach of the year
Kevin Stefanski | cleveland browns
The Browns have made the postseason only three times since returning to the NFL in 1999. Two of those came with Stefanski as head coach, and in both (including 2020) he was named Coach of the Year.
Stefanski guided Cleveland through a turbulent regular season to an 11–6 record. The Browns suffered season-ending injuries to several key players, including quarterback Deshaun Watson (shoulder) and running back Nick Chubb (knee).
Cleveland became the first team since 1987 to start five different quarterbacks in a season. Nevertheless, the Browns set a franchise record with the winning scores in the final two minutes of regulation on five occasions.
“It starts with Kevin,” said general manager Berry. “The way he was able to lead and manage the challenges of adversity this year was absolutely phenomenal. … I know our organization is in really good hands with him now and in the near future.” , jake trotter
Comeback Player of the Year
Joe Flacco QB | cleveland browns
Flacco remained unsigned during the offseason, preseason, and half of the regular season. But after Watson suffered a season-ending shoulder injury, the 39-year-old former Super Bowl MVP finally got his chance.
Flacco signed with Cleveland on November 20. Two weeks later, he made his first start with the Browns and became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for over 250 yards and multiple touchdowns in his first five games with a new team. In those five starts, Flacco also led the NFL with 1,616 passing yards.
With Flacco under center, Cleveland won four consecutive games to clinch their first playoff appearance since 2020.
“I was very fortunate to be a part of this team,” he said after Cleveland’s 45–14 loss to the Houston Texans in the first round of the playoffs. “I was given the opportunity to do this with those guys, I’m very grateful for it.” , jake trotter
