The NFL regular season has officially come to an end, meaning we now know the 14 teams set to participate in the playoffs — and we can also start to predict who is going to win each of the major awards.
While we know who will most likely win every award, the question of whether the expected winners are deserving can be debated in some instances.
Offensive Player of the Year
Projected winner: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seattle Seahawks
Jaxon Smith-Njigba played a huge role in the Seattle Seahawks going 14-3, leading the NFL with 1,793 receiving yards and reeling in 10 touchdowns. To show how dominant he was, Smith-Njigba had 1,200 more receiving yards than Cooper Kupp, who ranked second on the Seahawks in that category. Despite those gaudy numbers, though, it can seriously be debated whether Puka Nacua should win this award.
Deserving winner: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seattle Seahawks
Had Nacua played in all 17 games, perhaps we'd be having a different conversation, but I do think Smith-Njigba is the deserving winner. The reason has a lot to do with the supporting casts: Not only did Nacua have Matthew Stafford throwing to him, but he also had Davante Adams alongside him, taking a lot of pressure off. Nacua thrived in games Adams missed, but Smith-Njigba dominated all year despite never having a true WR2 alongside him.
Defensive Player of the Year
Projected winner: Myles Garrett, Cleveland Browns
Does this even need to be discussed? Myles Garrett is the projected Defensive Player of the Year award winner after setting the single-season record with 23 sacks. He will win this with ease.
Deserving winner: Myles Garrett, Cleveland Browns
While players like Brian Burns and Will Anderson Jr. deserve praise, setting the single-season sacks record is going to win you the Defensive Player of the Year award 99.9 percent of the time. We might never see a more dominant season than the one we just witnessed.
Coach of the Year
Projected winner: Mike Vrabel, New England Patriots
After back-to-back 4-13 seasons, the New England Patriots flipped their record around and then some, going 14-3 in 2025 while winning the AFC East and falling a tiebreaker short of the No. 1 seed in the conference. Some expected a turnaround from New England, but nobody expected this, so Mike Vrabel deserves immense credit — and would be a deserving winner of the Coach of the Year award.
Deserving winner: Mike Macdonald, Seattle Seahawks
With that being said, I don't necessarily think Vrabel is the most deserving for a couple of reasons. First, the Patriots earned one win all season against a team that finished with a winning record, raising the question of how much they benefited from facing an easy schedule. Second, the job Mike Macdonald did cannot be ignored: The Seahawks were overlooked by most at the start of the year, considering the division they were in and the transition from Geno Smith to Sam Darnold at QB, but they survived the NFC West gauntlet and are the NFC's No. 1 seed. The turnaround might not have been quite as big, but Seattle's odds of pulling off what they did were incredibly slim, and the job Macdonald has done, particularly on defense, was so impressive.
Executive of the Year
Projected winner: John Schneider, Seattle Seahawks
Nobody was bolder this past offseason than John Schneider, and the end result of that boldness was a team that went 14-3, won the toughest division in football and earned the NFC's No. 1 seed. Replacing Smith with Darnold was a decision many criticized at the time, and it couldn't have worked out much better. The same can be said about trading D.K. Metcalf, too; without that, who knows if Jaxon Smith-Njigba would've broken out the way he has?
Deserving winner: John Schneider, Seattle Seahawks
I assumed the Seahawks would finish closer to last place than first place in the West entering the season, and a big reason for that disparity to do with the moves Schneider made in the offseason. Darnold proved everyone wrong by having the season he had, the Metcalf trade led to Smith-Njigba's emergence and Schneider has made plenty of moves on the defensive end as well. He's the clear and deserving winner.
Offensive Rookie of the Year
Projected winner: Tetairoa McMillan, Carolina Panthers
He might not have had the early surge Emeka Egbuka had or the late-season push Tyler Shough had, but Tetairoa McMillan was the most consistent offensive rookie in the NFL this season. And after clearing the 1,000-yard mark in Week 18, he's likely going to win the Offensive Rookie of the Year award.
Deserving winner: Tetairoa McMillan, Carolina Panthers
This is deserved. Sure, the Carolina Panthers might not be a "deserving" playoff team at 8-9, but McMillan was a huge reason they were able to win the NFC South. Clearing 1,000 yards as a rookie, particularly on a team mostly bereft of offensive talent, is impressive. Perhaps, had Shough started all year or Jaxson Dart stayed healthy, someone else would've made this a real race, but McMillan is the deserving winner with how things shook out.
Defensive Rookie of the Year
Projected winner: Carson Schwesinger, Cleveland Browns
It's easy to overlook since Garrett stole the show in Cleveland, but Schwesinger, a second-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft out of UCLA, recorded 156 tackles, 2.5 sacks and even two interceptions.
Deserving winner: Carson Schwesinger, Cleveland Browns
It isn't hard to see why Schwesinger, a player who had more tackles than proven stars like Nick Bolton and De'Mario Davis and ranked sixth overall in that category, would win the Defensive Rookie of the Year award. He might not have Garrett's eye-popping sack total, but that also wasn't his role with the Cleveland Browns. James Pearce Jr. deserves a shoutout, too, but this isn't really close.
Most Valuable Player
Projected winner: Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams
Why not save the most important and closest award for last? This could go two ways, and I legitimately wouldn't care. With that being said, Matthew Stafford has been favored for most of the year, and it isn't hard to see why. He led the league in both passing yards (4,707) and touchdowns (46) while throwing only eight interceptions despite facing a brutally tough schedule. And yet, when all is said and done, I still wouldn't give him the award.
Deserving winner: Drake Maye, New England Patriots
Drake Maye's offensive numbers weren't as good as Stafford's, and he did face a much easier schedule, but it'd be unfair to ignore that Stafford has perhaps the best supporting cast in the game. Rather than Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, Maye throws to the likes of Stefon Diggs (coming off a torn ACL) and Kayshon Boutte. Maye's offensive line isn't as good as Stafford's. His running game isn't as good as Stafford's. His head coach doesn't help him offensively as Stafford's does.
I think any quarterback would thrive in Stafford's situation, even if they don't put up Stafford-like numbers. That just isn't the case in New England, though. Maye has elevated his team more than Stafford has, and the former finished the season as a division winner with a better record. This could go either way, but Maye feels like the more deserving pick.
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