Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson wins second NFL Most Valuable Player award

Lamar Jackson was a near-unanimous choice for his second AP NFL Most Valuable Player award, which was announced Thursday night during NFL Honors.

Baltimore’s All-Pro quarterback received 49 of 50 first-place votes from a national panel of voters, including media members who regularly cover the NFL, former players and coaches.

Jackson led the Ravens (14-5) to the NFL’s best record in the regular season, but they lost to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC championship game. The 27-year-old Jackson is the fourth player to win his second MVP before turning 28, joining Patrick Mahomes (27), Brett Favre (27) and Jim Brown (22).

San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey walked away with the AP Offensive Player of the Year award. Cleveland Browns edge rusher Myles Garrett defeated TJ Watt for AP Defensive Player of the Year. Houston Texans quarterback CJ Stroud won the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year award in a landslide. Defensive end Will Anderson Jr., Stroud’s teammate, won the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year award, beating out both Jalen Carter and Kobie Turner by two first-place votes.

The Browns took home four prizes. Quarterback Joe Flacco, who came off the bench to lead Cleveland to the playoffs, won the AP Comeback Player of the Year. Kevin Stefanski beat out Houston coach DeMeco Ryans for AP Coach of the Year honors by one first-place finish. Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz won the AP Assistant Coach of the Year award after leading the league’s No. 1 team.

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen got the other first place finish, finishing fifth overall. Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott came in second with 152 points. McCaffrey was third with 147 points and teammate Brock Purdy was fourth with 97.

Jackson threw for 3,678 yards and 24 touchdowns and ran for 821 yards and five scores while leading Baltimore to a record 10 wins over teams that finished with a winning record. He helped the Ravens beat Houston in the divisional round, but struggled in a 17-10 loss to the Chiefs in the AFC title game.

McCaffrey, the All-Pro running back from San Francisco, received 39 of 50 first-place votes for OPOY and earned 222 points, surpassing Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill.

Garrett, Cleveland’s All-Pro edge rusher, received 23 first-place votes and 165 points, compared to Watt’s 19 first-place votes and 140 points for DPOY.

Stroud received 48 of the 50 first-place votes for OROY, while Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua received the other two.

Anderson and Stroud are the fourth teammates to win the offensive and defensive rookie awards in the same season. Garrett Wilson and Sauce Gardner won the awards for the New York Jets last year.

Flacco beat out Bills safety Damar Hamlin and Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield for the comeback award. He received 13 first-place votes, 26 second-place votes and eight third-place votes, finishing with 151 points.

Hamlin returned to the NFL this season after collapsing on the field and requiring resuscitation following cardiac arrest on January 2, 2023. He played in five regular season games. Hamlin received 21 first-place votes, but appeared on 42 of the 50 ballots, while Flacco was at 47. He received seven second-place votes and 14 third-place votes for 140 points.

Mayfield, who moved from the Browns to the Panthers to the Rams last season, started every game for Tampa Bay and led them to the second round of the playoffs. He received 10 first-place votes and finished with 93 points.

Flacco, the 39-year-old former Super Bowl MVP, was at home in New Jersey with his family when Cleveland called him in November. He went 4-1 in five starts, passing for over 300 yards in four straight games with 13 touchdowns.

Others who received first-place votes were: Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (4), Rams QB Matthew Stafford (1) and 49ers QB Brock Purdy (1).

Stefanski led the Browns to their third playoff appearance since 1999 despite losing quarterback Deshaun Watson, star running back Nick Chubb and right tackle Jack Conklin to season-ending injuries and starting five QBs.

Ryans helped the Houston Texans go from worst to first place in the AFC South. The Texans defeated the Browns 41–14 in a wild-card playoff game, but voting was completed before the postseason.

Stefanski and Ryans both earned 165 points in a weighted points system. But Stefanski had 21 first-place votes to Ryan’s 20. Stefanski had 18 second-place votes and six third-place votes. Ryans received 21 second-place votes and two third-place votes. Dan Campbell of Detroit finished third. He received three first-place votes. San Francisco’s Kyle Shanahan (3), Baltimore’s John Harbaugh (2) and the Rams’ Sean McVay (1) also received first place honors.

Schwartz received 25 first-place votes and finished with 160 points, easily surpassing Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald.

Hill received seven first-place votes and finished with 139 points. Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb was third with 45 points, including one first-place finish. Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson received three first-place votes and finished fourth.

A unanimous All-Pro choice, McCaffrey led the NFL with 1,459 yards rushing and had 14 rushing TDs for the NFC champion 49ers. He also had 564 yards receiving for seven scores.

Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons finished third for DPOY with 89 points, including seven first-place votes. Cornerback DaRon Bland, Parson’s teammate, got the other first place finish, finishing fifth behind Raiders side Maxx Crosby.

Watt, who won the award in 2021, led the NFL with 19 sacks. But Garrett had the better season for the NFL’s top-ranked defense.

Despite constant double teams, Garrett had 14 sacks, 30 quarterback hits, 17 tackles for loss, four forced fumbles and forced offensive coordinators to avoid his side of the field.

Bland set an NFL record with five interceptions for a touchdown, but was named on only six ballots. He received two votes for second place and three for third place, along with first.

Stroud, the No. 2 overall pick, threw for 4,108 yards, 23 touchdowns, five interceptions and had a passer rating of 100.8, third-best by a rookie. He helped the Texans go from worst to first place in the AFC South and led them to a playoff victory in the wild-card round.

Stroud led the league in passing yards per game (273.9) and had the best touchdown-interception ratio of 4.6, becoming only the third player in NFL history to finish first in both categories, alongside Joe Montana (1989) and Tom Brady (2007). .

Nacua set a rookie record with 105 receptions and 1,486 yards receiving yards. Lions tight end Sam LaPorta finished third.

This was the second year of AP’s weight point system. For MVP, first-place votes are worth 10 points, second-place votes are worth five points, third-place votes are worth three, fourth-place votes are worth two, and fifth-place votes are worth one.

For all other prizes, first-place votes are worth five points, second-place votes are worth three, and third-place votes are worth one.