After an exciting end to the NFL season in Week 17, the playoffs are set in stone and it's time to look ahead to awards, the postseason and of course, the Super Bowl at the Superdome in New Orleans.
The Minnesota Vikings won their way into the playoffs after an impressive home victory against the Green Bay Packers, while the Denver Broncos earned the No. 1 seed after defeating the Kansas City Chiefs 38-3.
The New York Giants and Chicago Bears were left home despite winning in Week 17, while the Indianapolis Colts earned an impressive emotional victory at home against the Houston Texans, who are now the No. 3 seed in the AFC playoffs.
Here is a look at the major awards and who is likely to take them home this season.
MVP Award
Adrian Peterson
Running Back, Minnesota Vikings
Even though Peterson came up nine yards short of Eric Dickerson's all-time single-season rushing record, this award should be his. Peyton Manning is very deserving as well, but let's be honest, he has four MVP's already and the Vikings would be nowhere without Peterson.
Lest anyone forget, the Broncos were a playoff team last season with Tim Tebow, while the Vikings went just 3-13 with a rookie quarterback. Peterson had a season unlike any other back in recent memory, rushing for 2,097 yards and 12 touchdowns, including at east 154 yards in each of his last four games.
Peterson averaged 6.0 yards per carry this season and made Minnesota the second-ranked rushing team in the league, averaging over 160 yards per game. Peterson has rushed for at least 108 yards 10 different times this season and hit the 200-yard plateau twice, including in a 23-14 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Dec. 2.
The Vikings opened the year 4-1, but slumped after losing three out of the next four games. The sixth-year running back has been at his best during the second half of the season, leading the Vikings to five wins in their final seven games, including four straight to end the regular season.
The fact that wide receiver Percy Harvin missed part of the season left Peterson as the only true playmaker on offense, allowing defenses to crowd the line and use eight men in the box against the run. Even with all of that, Peterson rushed for 861 yards and five touchdowns in December.
Peterson came back just 10 months removed from major knee surgery and somehow has looked stronger and faster than ever before. He showed no signs of slowing down all year and apart from some minor issues during the season, Peterson didn't appear to suffer any type of significant injury.
Manning definitely deserves consideration for the award, but after Peterson led his team to the playoffs and hit the 2,000-yard mark, the award should be his. Hopefully the voters will have a Vulcan mind-meld with each other and give Manning (or the opposite of who wins this) the Comeback Player award so each of the two can be rewarded for their exceptional seasons.
Next in Line: Peyton Manning, QB, Denver Broncos
Comeback Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year
Peyton Manning
Quarterback, Denver Broncos
This one is based on the fact that Peterson takes home the MVP award. Both Manning and Peterson deserve the MVP and the Comeback awards after going through tough injuries and having great years, but like Highlander, there can only be one.
Peterson had the more impressive year and Manning had arguably a worse injury, which included multiple neck surgeries and fusion therapy. The four-time MVP winner was back to his usual form after missing all of last season, throwing for 4,659 yards and 37 touchdowns with 11 interceptions while completing nearly 70 percent of his passes. Manning ranked in the top six in the NFL in completion percentage, touchdowns, passing yards and completions.
After changing teams for the first time in his Hall of Fame career, he led the Broncos to 11 straight victories to finish the season and clinched the No. 1 seed for the playoffs with a 13-3 record. Manning proved he still has the skills to be a top quarterback in the NFL and one that has the chance to take his team to the Super Bowl every season.
Manning threw for six touchdowns and just one interceptions over the final two games of the season and helped Denver to average the fifth most passing yards per game in the league. Manning threw for at least one touchdown in every game this season and had at least three scores nine different times, including in the 38-3 victory over the Chiefs in the regular-season finale.
Next in Line: Adrian Peterson, Running Back, Minnesota Vikings (for both)
Defensive Player of the Year
J.J. Watt
Defensive End, Houston Texans
Watt has been the most impressive defensive player in all of football and has had one of the best seasons for a defensive end playing in a 3-4 scheme. He has been dominant throughout the year and leads the NFL in sacks with 20.5 and is first among his position with 16 pass deflections, a crazy statistic for a defensive lineman. Watt made 81 tackles during the season and also had four forced fumbles.
The Houston defense managed to get better after losing defensive end Mario Williams to Buffalo in free agency and it is mainly because of Watt. The Texans are ranked seventh in the league in rushing defense and Watt was excellent down the stretch, making four sacks over the last three games along with two forced fumbles.
Watt's most dominant game of the season came against the Indianapolis Colts in a 29-17 win over the Colts on Dec. 16 when he had three sacks and 10 tackles while also forcing a fumble. He also had three sacks against the Jaguars and had two more sacks the next week in a win over the Tennessee Titans.
The only other player who even has a sniff at this award is Aldon Smith of the 49ers, who finished the year with 19.5 sacks and 66 tackles along with three forced fumbles. Smith was excellent for a stellar San Francisco defense, but Watt was more dominant than anyone else in the league.
Next in Line: Aldon Smith, Linebacker, San Francisco 49ers
Offensive Rookie of the Year
Andrew Luck
Quarterback, Indianapolis Colts
There really should be three awards this season, or just one collective one for this entire class. Luck, Robert Griffin and Russell Wilson are at the top of the list, while in any other year, a running back like Albert Morris would walk away with the award after gaining 1,600 yards on the ground. Trent Richardson was also impressive with the Cleveland Browns, making this one of the deepest rookie draft classes in recent memory.
All three of the top rookie quarterbacks made the playoffs and could win this award, but it's Luck who deserves it the most. The Colts were by far the worst of the three teams the quarterbacks took over after going 2-14 last season and made the biggest turnaround of anyone in the NFL.
Luck set the single season rookie record for passing yards and also won the most games for any No. 1-overall pick during his rookie season. The former Stanford quarterback threw for 4,374 yards and 23 touchdowns while leading the Colts to five wins over their last six games, including a 28-16 victory in Week 17 over the Texans.
Next in Line: Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks; Alfred Morris, Washington Redskins; Robert Griffin III, Washington Redskins
