NFL Mid-Season Awards

The NFL season is officially half-way done and it's time for a quick review on who's leading the charge to take home some hardware at the end of the year. We still have 8 more weeks of action left before the playoffs start, so there's still along way to go. With that said, enjoy the mid-season awards and be sure to let me know on Twitter how stupid and wrong my awards are.....

Ultimate Football Blog NFL Mid-Season Awards

Defensive Rookie of the Half-Year:

Winner: C.J. Mosley (Baltimore Ravens)

Mosley was the 17th pick in this past summer's NFL Draft, but he's playing like he was the first overall pick. It shouldn't really surprise anyone that yet another Baltimore defensive draft pick has panned out with tremendous results. Mosley looks like he's been playing in the league for years now and hasn't really had a bad game yet. As a matter of fact, Pro Football Focus has Mosley rated as the 4th best ILB through the first 8 games of the season. That's higher than Luke Kuechly, Jerrod Mayo, Patrick Willis, and others. Not too bad for a rookie who was the 4th linebacker selected in the draft....

Runner-Ups:

1. Anthony Barr (Minnesota Vikings)

2. Khalil Mack (Oakland Raiders)

3. Aaron Donald (St. Louis Rams)

Offensive Rookie of the Half-Year:

Winner: Sammy Watkins (Buffalo Bills)

Sammy Watkins was my favorite offensive player in the 2014 NFL Draft and it looks like he will meet the high expectations placed upon him. After his first 8 games as a professional NFL player, Watkins is currently ranked 11th in the NFL in receiving yards with 590 yards and is currently tied for 12th place with 5 receiving TD's. Not only that, but Watkins is the kind of player that is a threat to score whenever he has the ball. Now, you must remember that rookie WR's usually struggle in their first season, but Watkins hasn't had a lot of struggles this far (other than show-boating and costing himself a TD) and he's had to work with some less-than-great quarterbacks. Watch out for this kid folks. He's the real deal and will only get better as time progresses. 

Runner-Ups:
1. Kelvin Benjamin (Carolina Panthers)
2. Branden Oliver (San Diego Chargers)
3. Derek Carr (Oakland Raiders)

Comeback Player of the Half-Year:

Winner: Rolando McClain (Dallas Cowboys)

Rolando McClain was supposed to be done as far as being a professional football player was concerned. The former eighth-overall pick out of Alabama looked to be just another bust drafted by the Oakland Raiders after multiple run-ins with the law (he had 3 arrests in 3 years, which forced the Raiders to cut him). After his stint with Oakland was over, McClain was looking for another chance with the Baltimore Ravens, but that didn't end well either as McClain would announce his retirement from football just a month after signing with Baltimore. No one knew what was going on in McClain's head, but everyone knew the kid was a talented football player with a lot of problems. Just when it looked like his career was over with though, McClain turned things around, signed with the Dallas Cowboys and is having a fantastic year. The Cowboys' defense was supposed to be one of the worst defense's in NFL history (they looked AWFUL in pre-season and in training camp), but the addition of a focused and healthy Rolando McClain has turned that unit's fortunes around. The only question that remains is....can McClain keep his head in the game and stay out of trouble? That's what everyone is waiting to see. 

Runner-Ups:

1. Jeremy Maclin (Philadelphia Eagles)

2. Eli Manning (New York Giants)

3. Trent Richardson (Indianapolis Colts)

Most Disappointing Player of the Half-Year:

Winner: Adrian Peterson (Minnesota Vikings)

The most disappointing player of the half-year thus far is a guy who has only seen action in one game this year, Adrian Peterson. Peterson is arguably one of the best running backs in football, when he's on the field. However, a few months back it was revealed that Peterson is a scumbag who abuses children (say whatever you want, but a parent should never use a weapon to hurt their child....NEVER!) and now, his football career is in question. This wasn't the first controversy surrounding Peterson though. As everyone remembers, a few years ago another son of Peterson's died at the hands of abuse and what did the country do? We automatically felt sorry for AP and everyone wished him the best. Then it was revealed that Peterson barely even knew the kid and didn't even take time out of his day to be a father to the boy, yet he was all but ready to suck up the sympathy everyone was handing out to him. I'm not a big fan of Adrian Peterson as a person, but the guy is a fantastic football player when he's on the field and that's why he's easily my most disappointing player of the half-year so far and to be honest with you, I don't see anyone taking his place anytime soon.

Runner-Ups:

1. Doug Martin (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)

2. Josh McCown (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)

3. Dwayne Bowe (Kansas City Chiefs)

Worst Coach of the Half-Year:

Winner: Dennis Allen (Oakland Raiders)

Dennis Allen was so bad this year, he was the first coach released by his team and he couldn't even make it to the mid-season. Allen isn't entirely to blame though as the Raiders roster is so bad that I'm not even sure Bill Belichick could win 3 games with them. 

Runner-Ups:

1. Rex Ryan (New York Jets)

2. Mike Smith (Atlanta Falcons)

3. Lovie Smith (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)

Best Coach of the Half-Year:

Winner: Bruce Arians (Arizona Cardinals)

The Arizona Cardinals weren't expected to be in first place in the very-tough NFC West, yet here they are sitting at 6-1 as we head into the second half of the season. How are the Cardinals doing this? Very good coaching, that's how. Arians was never supposed to be an NFL head coach, yet he was put into a temporary role in Indianapolis while head coach Chuck Pagano was out fighting cancer, and he led the Colts to a 9-3 record in what was one of the biggest turn-arounds in NFL history. Arians is showing that his time with the Colts wasn't a fluke as he's got a Carson Palmer-led Cardinals team in a great position to not only win the NFC West, but potentially contend for a Super Bowl. Not bad for a guy who was never supposed to be an NFL head coach. 

Runner-Ups:
1. Jason Garrett (Dallas Cowboys)
2. Bill Belichick (New England Patriots)
3. John Fox (Denver Broncos)

Most Shocking Worst Team of the Half-Year:

Winner: Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were not a good football team last season. However, the off-season these guys had this summer got the fan base excited once again and NFL experts predicted that Tampa Bay would be this season's "POP" team. That's what happens when you improve at both the head coaching position (Lovie Smith is a huge upgrade over Greg Schiano) and the quarterback position. The Bucs signed Josh McCown in the off-season after he had a great year with Chicago last season, but McCown has played like the guy who was in-and-out of the NFL for the past 10 years. There's a reason that McCown has been an NFL back-up and a CFL starter over his 10-year career and not an NFL starter and the Bucs found that out the hard way. The good news for Tampa Bay is, their horrible season has put them in a position to grab the #1 quarterback in the draft (who at the moment is Oregon QB Marcus Mariota) and if they can improve that position, than maybe....just maybe, next year will be the year the Bucs actually "POP".

Runner-Ups:

1. New York Jets

2. Chicago Bears

3. New Orleans Saints

Most Shocking Best Team of the Half-Year:

Winner: Arizona Cardinals

As I've already mentioned earlier in this column, no one expected the Arizona Cardinals to be 6-1 and sitting at the top of the toughest division in football at the mid-point of the season. The fact that the Cardinals have been depleted by injuries and have Carson Palmer as QB and are the best team (at the moment...) in the NFC, that's pretty damn impressive. Can the birds of the desert keep the momentum up and make a return trip to the Super Bowl? Part of me highly doubts it, but something tells me this team likes when people doubt them. 

Runner-Ups:

1. Dallas Cowboys

2. Detroit Lions

3. Buffalo Bills

Offensive Player of the Half-Year:

Winner: DeMarco Murray (Dallas Cowboys)

One of the biggest reasons the Dallas Cowboys are currently sitting at 6-2 on the season and are looking at a potential return to the playoffs? DeMarco Murray. This kid has been absolutely lights out this season. Murray is currently on pace to break Eric Dickerson's single season rushing record. He has 1,054 rushing yards half-way through the season and it doesn't look like he's going to slow down anytime soon. The only concern I have is that the amount of carries Murray is getting could eventually slow him down in the last-half of the season, but we have to take a "wait and see" approach with that one. As of right now though? Murray is easily the best offensive player in the NFL up to this point....


Runner-Ups:
1. Andrew Luck (Indianapolis Colts)
2. Ben Roethlisberger (Pittsburgh Steelers)
3. Arian Foster (Houston Texans)

Defensive Player of the Half-Year:

Winner: J.J. Watt (Houston Texans)

This one was an easy one to give away. J.J. Watt is easily the most talented defensive player in the NFL and I don't know how he does it, but it seems like he continues to improve year-after-year. Once the Texans get Jadeveon Clowney back and healthy, their defense has a legit shot at becoming the most dangerous unit in the NFL and it all starts and begins with Watt. When it's all said and done, it wouldn't surprise me if we are talking about Watt being the best defensive player to ever play in the NFL. This guy is just a beast people and it seems like he never has an off-week. Pure definition of "NFL stud". 

Runner-Ups:

1. Justin Houston (Kansas City Chiefs)

2. Lavonte David (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)

3. Luke Kuechly (Carolina Panthers)

Worst Team of the Half-Year:

Winner: Oakland Raiders

The Raiders are the only winless team left in the NFL and I'm going to be honest with you here....I don't know if they will win a game this season. Look at their remaining schedule. They play @ Seattle, Denver, @ San Diego, Kansas City, @ St. Louis, San Francisco, @ Kansas City, Buffalo, and then @ Denver. Is there a realistic winnable game on that schedule outside of maybe sneaking one by St. Louis or Buffalo? Watch this team folks. We may have an 0-16 team in front of our very eyes. 

Runner-Ups:

1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

2. New York Jets

3. Jacksonville Jaguars

Best Team of the Half-Year:

Winner: Denver Broncos

The Denver Broncos are the best team in football right now. They are easily the most complete team in the NFL on both sides of the ball and this looks like the year the Super Bowl trophy makes a return to the Mile High city. Denver is currently sitting at 6-1 on the season and I honestly don't know if these guy's will lose another game before the playoff's arrive. I fully expect to see this team in the Super Bowl again this season, only this time I expect the result will be different. The Broncos added a lot of pieces in the off-season and those pieces appear to be paying off in big ways. Will this be the year the Broncos re-capture the Lombardi Trophy and Peyton Manning rides off into the sunset (where he will eventually poke his head out again as an NFL coach....)? It sure looks that way to this guy.

Runner-Ups:

1. Arizona Cardinals

2. New England Patriots

3. Dallas Cowboys

MVP:

Winner: Andrew Luck (Indianapolis Colts)

In my opinion, the MVP award should be given out to a guy who, if you took that player off that team....that team would look entirely different. In my opinion, the guy who fits that mold to perfection is none other than Andrew Luck. Can you imagine what the Colts would look like if they hadn't had lucked into Luck? From a pure talent perspective, the Colts aren't a good football team. However, Andrew Luck is such a dynamic player that he himself makes this team a legit playoff contender. Remember what happened the year before Luck arrived in Indy? The Colts were 1-15 and made the playoffs the next year with a rookie QB. People say I have a "man crush" on Luck and I'm not afraid to admit it. I've watched him play since he was a freshman at Stanford and I could tell even then that he was going to be a stud in the pro's and he's shown that that's exactly what's happening. By the time this kid retires, I'll be shocked if he doesn't have 3-5 Super Bowl rings and is a first ballot hall-of-famer. Some people just have "it" and Luck was blessed at birth. 

Runner-Ups:

1. DeMarco Murray (Dallas Cowboys)

2. J.J. Watt (Houston Texans)

3. Peyton Manning (Denver Broncos)