Finalists for 2023 NFL Most Valuable Player and Offensive Player of the Year Announced
Lamar Jackson, Christian McCaffrey, and Dak Prescott have been named as finalists for the Associated Press 2023 NFL Most Valuable Player and Offensive Player of the Year awards.
The winners of these prestigious awards will be revealed at the NFL Honors event on Feb. 8. The voting for these awards was conducted by a panel of 50 media members who actively cover the league. The voting process took place before the start of the playoffs.
Joining the aforementioned finalists is Josh Allen from the Buffalo Bills and Brock Purdy from the San Francisco 49ers for the Most Valuable Player award. The finalists for Offensive Player of the Year include Tyreek Hill from the Miami Dolphins and CeeDee Lamb from the Dallas Cowboys.
Lamar Jackson, the 2019 NFL MVP, showcased his exceptional skills once again this season. He threw for 3,678 yards and 24 touchdowns while also rushing for 821 yards and five scores. Jackson played a pivotal role in leading the Baltimore Ravens to a stellar 14-4 record, securing them the best record in the league. He received 45 out of 50 votes for the AP first-team All-Pro.
The Baltimore Ravens will be facing off against the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC championship game on Sunday.
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Dak Prescott had an outstanding season with 4,516 yards passing, a league-leading 36 touchdown passes, and an impressive 105.9 passer rating. He played a key role in leading the Dallas Cowboys to clinch the NFC East title. However, the Cowboys’ playoff run came to an end in the wild-card round against the Green Bay Packers.
Christian McCaffrey, who was a unanimous choice for the AP All-Pro team, had a remarkable season. He led the NFL with 1,459 rushing yards and scored 14 rushing touchdowns for the San Francisco 49ers. Additionally, he contributed 564 receiving yards and seven receiving touchdowns.
Brock Purdy, along with Christian McCaffrey, will be leading the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC championship game against the Detroit Lions. The 49ers finished the season with a strong 13-5 record.
The Cleveland Browns have finalists in four categories: Myles Garrett for Defensive Player of the Year, Kevin Stefanski for Coach of the Year, Joe Flacco for Comeback Player of the Year, and Jim Schwartz for Assistant Coach of the Year.
The Houston Texans have finalists for Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year. Quarterback C.J. Stroud and edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. are aiming to continue the Texans’ winning streak after wide receiver Garrett Wilson and cornerback Sauce Gardner won these awards in 2022.
The Texans advanced in the playoffs by defeating the Cleveland Browns in a thrilling wild-card game before falling short against the Baltimore Ravens in the divisional round.
The finalists for Defensive Player of the Year include Micah Parsons and DaRon Bland from the Cowboys, Maxx Crosby from the Raiders, and T.J. Watt from the Steelers. T.J. Watt led the NFL in sacks with 19, followed by Crosby with 14 1/2, and both Parsons and Bland with 14. Bland also set an NFL record with five interception returns for touchdowns.
For Offensive Rookie of the Year, the finalists are Sam LaPorta from the Lions, Jahmyr Gibbs from the Falcons, Puka Nacua from the Rams, Bijan Robinson from the Falcons, and C.J. Stroud from the Texans.
The finalists for Defensive Rookie of the Year include Jalen Carter from the Eagles, Kobie Turner from the Rams, Joey Porter Jr. from the Steelers, Devon Witherspoon from the Seahawks, and Will Anderson Jr. from the Texans.
The Coach of the Year finalists are DeMeco Ryans from the Texans, Dan Campbell from the Lions, Kyle Shanahan from the 49ers, John Harbaugh from the Ravens, and Kevin Stefanski from the Browns.
Kevin Stefanski, the previous year’s Coach of the Year, demonstrated his leadership skills once again by guiding the Browns to an impressive 11-6 record despite facing challenges such as the absence of Deshaun Watson and the need to utilize four different starting quarterbacks. DeMeco Ryans made an impressive debut as the Texans’ head coach, leading them from the worst team in the AFC South to division champions. Dan Campbell helped the Lions secure their first division title in 30 years, while John Harbaugh and Kyle Shanahan guided their teams to the No. 1 seeds in their respective conferences.
Jim Schwartz, the defensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns, played a major role in guiding the team’s defense to become the top-ranked defense in the NFL. Other Assistant Coach of the Year finalists include Ben Johnson from the Lions, Mike Macdonald and Todd Monken from the Ravens, and Bobby Slowik from the Texans.
In the Comeback Player of the Year category, the finalists include Baker Mayfield from the Buccaneers, Matthew Stafford from the Rams, Tua Tagovailoa from the Dolphins, and Damar Hamlin from the Bills.
This year, the Associated Press introduced a weighted voting system for the awards. The MVP category allowed voters to select their top five players, while all other awards required the selection of the top three contenders. For MVP, first-place votes were worth 10 points, second-place votes were worth 5 points, third-place votes were worth 3 points, fourth-place votes were worth 2 points, and fifth-place votes were worth 1 point. For all other awards, first-place votes equaled 5 points, second-place votes equaled 3 points, and third-place votes equaled 1 point.
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