NFL Week 14 awards: Khalil Mack decimates Denver

Offensive Player of the Week

A.J. Green, WR Cincinnati Bengals

It is always a bit odd to honor a player from a losing team in this space, but A.J. Green was exceedingly deserving based on an impressive performance. The former Georgia Bulldogs wideout had one of his best games of the season, catching six passes for 132 yards and a touchdown, and that would stand out on any occasion.

With that on the table, Green’s showing was doubly strong for Cincinnati, as the Bengals lost starting quarterback Andy Dalton early in the game, and most of this damage was done with backup A.J. McCarron under center. McCarron was (somewhat) surprisingly competent in the game, but it definitely helps to have Green on board, and his status as one of the best wide receivers in the NFL should not be in doubt.

Runner-up: Odell Beckham Jr., WR New York Giants

Defensive Player of the Week

Khalil Mack, OLB/DE Oakland Raiders

The Atlanta Falcons have 15 sacks during the 2015 NFL season.

Khalil Mack had 5 sacks, by himself, on Sunday.

Anointing Mack as the top defensive player was the easiest choice of any award this week, as the Oakland pass-rusher was utterly dominant. Obviously, posting five sacks in a single game would be enough to land an award such as this at any point, but Mack also contributed 10 quarterback pressures in the game while basically decimating the Denver offensive line.

For his work, Mack earned the highest grade of any pass rusher this season from Pro Football Focus, and with the fact that J.J. Watt exists, that is doubly impressive. It is hard to overstate just how good Khalil Mack was in this game, and frankly an argument can be made that he led the Raiders to a win in a way that would be almost impossible for any defensive player to duplicate.

Runner-up: Aaron Donald, DT St. Louis Rams

Next: Week 14 MVP