Field Gulls
The NFL Honors finalists have been revealed, and there is a significant Seattle Seahawks presence across eight Associated Press awards.
Superstar wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba is obviously a finalist for Offensive Player of the Year, although the inclusion of MVP contender Drake Maye could significantly hurt his chances of winning. Perhaps that’s a consolation prize for Maye should he not win MVP over Matthew Stafford, as it’s not been common lately to win MVP and OPOY. Puka Nacua, Christian McCaffrey, and Bijan Robinson are the other finalists.
Head coach Mike Macdonald is a finalist for Coach of the Year, joining a formidable quintet that consists of himself, Liam Coen, Ben Johnson, Mike Vrabel, and Kyle Shanahan. Coen and Johnson were rookie head coaches who guided their respective teams from the cellar to division titles, Vrabel has the New England Patriots on the verge of a Super Bowl, and Shanahan led the San Francisco 49ers to the playoffs despite a myriad of key injuries. Macdonald guided the Seahawks to the NFC’s number one seed, something few thought was possible at the start of the season.
Macdonald isn’t the only Seahawks coach up for an award, however. Offensive coordinator and head coach candidate Klint Kubiak is a finalist for Assistant Coach of the Year, with Josh McDaniels, Vic Fangio, Brian Flores, and Vance Joseph as the others who finished top five in the voting. Flores is interestingly the only assistant not on a playoff team, but his defense finished in the top 10 in points scored and third in DVOA, all while overcoming some unfathomably bad quarterback play.
Lastly, second-round pick Nick Emmanwori is a Defensive Rookie of the Year finalist. The electrifying defensive back/pseudo-linebacker is in tough against James Pearce Jr, Carson Schwesinger, Xavier Watts, and Abdul Carter. Pearce and Watts is amusing because the GM who drafted them both just got fired by the Atlanta Falcons, but Pearce could be a legit candidate to win over Schwesinger and Emmanwori with his 10.5 sacks. Chances are it comes down to Emmanwori, Schwesinger, and Pearce, with Emmanwori as the only DROY finalist on a playoff team.
The full NFL Honors awards list can be found here, with the announcements and voting tallies to be revealed on Thursday, Feb. 5 at 9 pm ET on NBC and NFL Network.
