Feb 2, 2019; Atlanta, GA, USA; Patrick Mahomes during red carpet arrivals for the NFL Honors show at the Fox Theatre. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes took home Offensive Player of the Year honors and Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald captured his second consecutive Defensive Player of the Year award on Saturday as the end-of-year Associated Press NFL accolades were announced.
New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley won AP Offensive Rookie of the Year, Chicago Bears coach Matt Nagy was selected AP Coach of the Year, and Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck received the AP Comeback Player of the Year.
Mahomes threw for 50 touchdowns and 5,097 yards in his first season as the Chiefs’ starting quarterback. The second-year player led Kansas City to the AFC Championship Game.
Donald, who had a league-best 20.5 sacks in the regular season, helped lead the Rams to the Super Bowl. He received 45 votes for the top defensive performer, with Bears pass rusher Khalil Mack coming in second with five votes.
Barkley, the second overall draft pick in the 2018 draft, lived up to his billing by rushing for 1,307 yards and 11 touchdowns in his first pro season.
Nagy was the runaway winner for Coach of the Year after leading the Bears to a 12-4 record and the NFC North division title in his debut season. Nagy got 24 votes; Anthony Lynn of the Los Angeles Chargers came in a distant second with just 10.
Luck, too, was a runaway winner for Comeback Player of the year. He finished second in the league in touchdown passes (39) after missing the entire 2017 season with a shoulder injury. Luck threw for 4,593 yards in leading the Colts to 10-6 record and a wild-card playoff berth. Luck got 44 votes, and Houston’s J.J. Watt was second with four votes.
Nagy’s defensive coordinator, Vic Fangio, earned assistant coach of the year honors. Fangio accepted a head-coaching position with the Denver Broncos in the offseason.
—Field Level Media