​Third Quarter Awards

Offensive Rookie of the Year: Dak Prescott
Dak Prescott has played really good, even if his stats don’t necessarily reflect that. The fact that he came into the offseason as the third string quarterback and ended up as the starter, even after Tony Romo was cleared to play just shows how good Prescott has been. He keeps his team in every single game and finds ways to win, no matter which team and which defense he is going up against. His ability to make plays on third down and late in the fourth quarter is staggering and should scare the other 31 teams that passed on him in the draft for many seasons to come.
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Other Considerations:
Ezekiel Elliott, Carson Wentz, Malcolm Mitchell

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Defensive Rookie of the Year: Joey Bosa
There aren’t that many defensive rookies that made a gigantic impact on games this season, with the exception of Joey Bosa. Bosa is a difference maker and has proved a lot of his doubters were wrong. His holdout at the beginning of the season was embarrassing for both the Chargers and Bosa, but he made up for lost time and should give Charger fans some hope. He only has five and a half sacks and 24 tackles this season, but his abilities and threat give something for opposing offenses to plan for each and every Sunday.
 
Other Considerations:
Jalen Ramsey

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Comeback Player of the Year: DeMarco Murray
DeMarco Murray would be an MVP candidate if the Titans had two or three more wins. They are still in playoff contention in a bad division, and the reason for that has been DeMarco Murray. He is on pace to rush for somewhere around 1,400 yards and eleven touchdowns on the ground and even has had a touchdown pass on the season for ten yards. He is showing what made him so great back in Dallas and what Philadelphia missed on him last season. If he can continue to provide veteran leadership on the offensive side of the ball to a young Tennessee team, then the Titans should be a team for the rest of the AFC to worry about for the next few seasons.

Other Considerations:
Andrew Luck, Joe Flacco

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Executive of the Year: Jerry Jones
What more can you say about the Cowboys offseason other than the fact that they drafted two players that are both under consideration for the MVP award in their first seasons. To this point in the season, they have only lost one game and are the only team to make the playoffs and it would take a major collapse for them to not have a first round bye in the NFC. They have the longest winning streak ever for this historic franchise. All of this should go to Jerry Jones and his staff because they turned a team that only won four games last season to one of the very best teams in the NFL in one draft.
 
Other Considerations:
Rick Spielman, Bill Belichick

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Coach of the Year: Jack Del Rio
Jack Del Rio has done an outstanding job turning around the Oakland Raiders and making Derek Carr an MVP candidate. They are certainly playoff bound, barring any major meltdown, for the first time since 2002. He has made his team believe in themselves and has given them hope going forward. Their defense isn’t very good, but their offense and ability to stay in games is a product of Jack Del Rio and his coaching staff.
 
Other Considerations:
Bill Belichick, Jason Garrett

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Offensive Player of the Year: Ezekiel Elliott
Ezekiel Elliott is leading the league in rushing yards, rushes of twenty yards or more, fourth in yards per attempt, second in rushing touchdowns and the only running back that is averaging more than 100 yards per game. A lot of credit does and should go to the offensive line, but the thing that he specializes is extending runs and making people miss. He isn’t just a good running back though, he is also a good pass blocker and receiving threat. He is a complete difference maker for the Cowboys and is possibly the reason that they have only lost one game to this point in the season.
 
Other Considerations:
Tom Brady, Matt Ryan, Derek Carr, Matthew Stafford

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Defensive Player of the Year: Von Miller
The Denver defense is one of the best in the league and that is mostly because of Von Miller. Von Miller gives other teams something that they have to worry about which then frees up the other side. If the other team doesn’t focus on Miller, then he will make the quarterback pay. His disruptions also make the secondary better because the quarterback has to get the ball out quicker and is more prone to make a mistake. The Denver hasn’t been very good on offense and the main reason that they are still in contention for a wildcard spot is because of Von Miller and his defense.
 
Other Considerations:
Marcus Peters, Lorenzo Alexander, Eric Berry

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Most Valuable Player: Ezekiel Elliott
The Cowboys have the best record in the NFL right now and although some of that is because of Dak Prescott’s ability, most of it is thanks to Elliott’s. Elliott is the thing that other teams have to plan for. He takes the pressure off of the rest of the offense and allows guys like Cole Beasley, Jason Witten and Dez Bryant to face single coverages to allow Prescott to get the ball to whichever target he wants. The way that he finished runs and turns a no gain play into three yards or turns a three-yard play into five yards is something that not all running backs can do. All of the quarterbacks considered for this award are valuable, without Elliott, the Cowboys would have lost more than one game to this point in the season.
 
Other Considerations:
Dak Prescott, Matt Ryan, Tom Brady, Derek Carr, Matthew Stafford

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