2012 NFL Awards Winners

MVP: Adrian Peterson, Halfback, Minnesota Vikings

Adrian Peterson

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jh2sXrsx15Y/UM7P36tWIsI/

AAAAAAAAAUg/ZftAHf1f4zo/s1600/Adrian-Peterson.jpg

Peterson has had a career year that is defiantly worthy of the MVP. He had over 2000 yards on the season, only the seventh player ever to reach this plateau. He came within nine yards of owning the record for most rushing yards in a season. This happening after tearing his ACL and MCL last December. Without Peterson, there is a very little chance that the Vikings would have made the playoffs and it is doubtful they would even have a winning record. Not only do his stats add up so does his on-field play. He was a dominating force all year, leaving many tacklers asking "What happened?" and astonishing everyone with 80+ yard runs. Peterson's performance this year is worthy of the MVP, much more then any other candidate.

Offensive Player of the Year: Adrian Peterson, Halfback, Minnesota Vikings

I don't think anyone else had the season like Peterson.  I could go with any of the elite quarterbacks, but Peterson's season stood out more then anyone else, except Lions' wide receiver Calvin Johnson, who if his team performed better, he would have gotten the award. 

Defensive Player of the Year: JJ Watt, Defensive End, Houston Texans

Watt has been a monster on the defensive line, wreaking havoc on opposing offensive lineman and quarterbacks. He is the league leader in sacks with 20.5.  This is two sacks behind the single season record held by Michael Strahan. His sack yards of 139, is second only to the 49ers' Aldon Smith's 145. When he was not getting to the quarterback, he was still affecting passes, deflecting sixteen thrown passes. That is the most for any non-defensive back. Watt also had four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and 81 combined tackles. He had an outstanding year and should be rewarded for it.

Offensive Rookie of the Year: Andrew Luck, Quarterback, Indianapolis Colts

Robert Griffin III, Andrew Luck, and Russell Wilson

http://thesportsquotient.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/nfl_3panel_1_576.jpg

This is no doubt this is the hardest award to decide. There are three great rookie quarterbacks that stand a head above the rest (Shout out to Redskins' RB Alfred Morris, second in the league in rushing, who in any other year would be a top candidate) They are Andrew Luck of Indianapolis, Robert Griffin III of Washington, and Russell Wilson of Seattle. All three led teams that were not in  the playoffs in 2011 to playoff spots in 2012. Each has been a prime performers at big spots in big games. Luck had the bigger shoes to fulfill then RGIII.  Wilson and his team had a drastic change from 2011 to 2012. The Colts won nine more games with Luck, while the Redskins won five more games with Griffin III, and the Seahawks won four more games with Wilson. Luck also had the worst running game of the three and had to pass the ball more. RGIII and Wilson both had 393 pass attempts, while Luck had 627 attempts. Luck had to do more and did it in a much more complex system then RGIII and Wilson. What might hurt Luck in the end is his turnovers of eighteen picks and ten fumbles. This year, I would be surprised to see co-Offensive Rookies of the Year. It happened in 1980 when two players won the Defensive Rookie of the Year.

Defensive Rookie of the Year: Luke Kuechly, Linebacker, Carolina Panthers

Kuechly was a tackling machine in college and he hasn't missed a beat in the NFL. The Panthers Middle Linebacker was the league leader in combined tackles with 164 tackles. That is fifteen more tackles then the runner-up, San Francisco's NaVorro Bowman. He is seventh in the league in total tackles with 103 and is tied for first place in assisted tackles with 61 with Washington's London Fletcher. Kuechly also had two interceptions and three fumble recoveries. Kuechly is a star and in a few years will be the best linebacker in the game.

Coach of the Year: Bruce Arians, Indianapolis Colts

Bruce Arians

http://cdn3.sbnation.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/

5332509/155466057.0_standard_352.0.jpg

Arians was not the coach at the start of the season, nor at the end, but he is the only guy I can think of who deserves this award. When head coach Chuck Pagano was diagnosed with leukemia after the week three game against Jacksonville, Arians took the rians while Pagano went into treatment. In his first game as coach, the Colts stunned Green Bay Packers 30-27. That was the start of a 9-3 run as head coach. Pagano came back for the last game of the season. Not only did Arians lead the team through tough times, he was a main reason last year’s worst team in the league is in the playoffs. He should get consideration for any of the head coaching jobs that open up in the off-season. I do not know if he will accept any offers, though. 

Comeback Player of the Year: Peyton Manning, Quarterback, Denver Broncos 

Is this even a question? After missing the whole 2011 NFL Season due to neck surgery, Manning has come back on a new team and has led them to the number one seed in the playoffs. Peterson only missed one game last season, while Manning missed all sixteen. He has made the whole team better. Not only that, he is having a great season. He has 4659 passing yards, 37 touchdowns, a 68.% completion percentage, a 84.1 QBR, and a 105.8 passer rating. Many were unsure if he could return to his elite level of play. He defiantly has returned to that level.

Top 5 Players In College Basketball So Far

After a great weekend in college basketball, the season looks to be heading into the in conference season. No more one-sided affairs between top teams and the bottom of the pack mid-majors. It is time for even match-ups between rivals with the best teams and players.  I have decided to ranked the top five players in college basketball so far. So, here are my top five players.

Jeff Withey
http://cdn0.sbnation.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/3985963/
20121126_kkt_sm8_413.0_standard_352.0.jpg

Jeff Withey

Kansas' Withey made a name for himself in last year's NCAA Tournament. In last year's Elite Eight game against UNC, he had 15 points and 8 blocks. That was one of his four games in the Tournament with 7+ blocks. This year he is proving his tournament performance was not fluke. This year, he is averaging 14.1 points per game, 8.3 rebounds per game, and 5 blocks per game (Second in the country). He is team leader in rebounds and blocks and is second in points. He is a block shot machine. In their most recent game against then ranked #7 Ohio State Buckeyes, he led the Jayhawks to a victory with 14 points and 10 boards. Withey is a player I would love to build a college team around. He is a defensive force in the paint who can score and rebound the ball, too.

Michael Carter-Williams

Carter-Williams is the top true point guard in nation. He has had only four game where he has had less then 10 assists. He averages 12.4 points per game and 10.3 assists per game. He is the only player that currently averages 10+ assists. They need him to play well to win, evident by their most recent game, a loss to Temple. He did have 13 points, but was a dreadful 3-17 from the field and 7-15 from the line. He also only had four assists. Carter-Williams is the key to Syracuse's success this season.

Mason Plumlee
http://devilsindurham.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/mason-plumlee.jpg

Mason Plumlee

Plumlee is the best player on the nation's #1 ranked team, Duke. Without Plumlee, they would not have started off so well. He is averaging a double-double, with an average of 19.3 points per game and 11.5 rebounds per game. He is also shooting an excellent percentage at .641%. Against the #2 ranked  Louisville, he had 17 points and 7 boards and when facing then #4 ranked Ohio State, he had 21 points and 17 rebounds, five of them offensive rebounds. He is a very good player who should be a great leader for the Blue Devils this season.


Doug McDermott

The 2012 First Team All-American returned to Creighton for his junior season and is currently lighting up the court. He is averaging 23.1 points per game (Third in the nation), 6.8 rebounds, and is shooting very efficiently. He is shooting .549 from the field, .509 from behind the arc and .873 from the charity stripe.  Facing Wisconsin, he had 30 points and 8 rebounds and when facing Cal, he had 34 points and 9 rebounds. McDermott should continue to be a top player in the country.

Cody Zeller
http://matchbin-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/public/sites/659/
assets/G2R6_LegendsClassicBaske_Wykl.jpg

Cody Zeller

Zeller is the best player on the highly ranked Indiana Hoosiers team. He currently averages 16.4 points per game and 8.1 rebounds per game. He shooting percentage from the field is .626 and from the free throw line is .708. When Indiana beat Georgetown, the 7'0'' Zeller had 17 points and 8 rebounds and against UNC, he had 20 pints and 8 rebounds in the victory. Unlike the other players in this group, I believe Zeller has underperformed this season. He should have had more performances like he had against Central Connecticut State, when he 19 points and 19 rebounds. Now that he will be facing Big Ten competition game in and game out, he needs to be a real leader. I expect him to become an even better player as the season goes on. He should end the season averaging a double-double.

Bowl Predictions For 2012-13

Top 5 Bowls Games This Year

Eddie Lacy
http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/2ikeJxDQyksfLVJdqqtP4g-/YXBwaWQ9
eW5ld3M7Y2g9MjQ3Mjtjcj0xO2N3PTM0ODY7ZHg9MDtkeT0wO2Zp
PXVsY3JvcDtoPTQ0NztxPTg1O3c9NjMw/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/
News/ap_webfeeds/6315c2911c6cd621210f6a70670056c0.jpg

1. The BCS Championship is always a good game. This year it is bound to be a slugfest between two defensive minded teams, the defending national champions, the Alabama Crimson Tide and the undefeated Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Both teams have top defenses that will keep each opposing team's point totals very low. The difference makers will have to be on offense. Alabama's QB AJ McCarron has been in this situation before and will be outstanding in the game. The two-headed running attack of Eddie Lacy and TJ Yeldon have a combined 27 touchdowns this season. Alabama's top offensive players don't even touch the ball. They have the best offensive line in the nation. The Notre Dame offense doesn't have real stars, except for maybe Theo Riddick. When Riddick is going, the team is going to be more efficient. The game will be decided by who can break through the opponent's defense.

2. The Fiesta Bowl is the best BCS Bowl excluding the championship. It features two teams that less then a month ago were pitted to play in the National Championship. They are the Oregon Ducks and the Kansas State Wildcats. Both teams offensive's start with the run game. Oregon has two of the top runners in the nation, Kenjon Barner and DeAnthony Thomas. Kansas State's Collin Klein is a great dual-threat QB. This game will be decided by whose defense can keep the opposing offense in check. If either defense let's the QB make plays, there will be a lot of quick scores. 

Johnny Manziel
http://www1.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/Johnny+Manziel+Texas+A+M+v+
SMU+eLH01bL7ulul.jpg

3. In my mind, the Cotton Bowl Classic is a BCS Bowl, without the BCS label. Last season, the teams in the Cotton Bowl had higher BCS rankings then the teams in both the Sugar and Orange Bowl. In 2011, it had two top 17 teams. This year is no different. It has two high profile schools, with high-profile QBs. Landry Jones and the Oklahoma Sooners against Heisman winner Johnny Manziel and the Texas A&M Aggies. This match-up is a main event anywhere. What adds to the game is that Texas A&M left Oklahoma and the Big 12 to go to the SEC before the season. Oklahoma is not just representing themselves, they are representing the whole Big 12. The game is bound to be a thrilling shootout. We will see who will come out on top, the Faboulous Fresman Johnny Football or the Stout Senior Landry Jones. 

4. The Capital One Bowl always has a good match-up and this year is not an exception. On New Year's Day, the Georgia Bulldogs and the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Both lost in their conference title games, with Georgia losing a heartbreaker and Nebraska getting blown out of the stadium. Both teams have very good QB's who have very different styles. Georgia's Aaron Murray is a skilled pocket-passer who has a very good arm. Taylor Martinez of Nebraska is a top dual-threat QB in the nation. The difference in the game will be Georgia's great defense led by LB's Jarvis Jones and Alec Ogletree. Both are in my top three LB's in the nation. They will decide the game.

Kolton Browning
http://theadvocate.com/csp/mediapool/sites/dt.common.streams.StreamServer.
cls?STREAMOID=45oU9y0nsO7GNUIOSlalJM$daE2N3K4ZzOUsqbU5sY
ubnXvDDURlwIfXvhqqYoxZWCsjLu883Ygn4B49Lvm9bPe2QeMKQd
VeZmXF\$9l$4uCZ8QDXhaHEp3rvzXRJFdy0KqPHLoMevcTLo3h8
xh70Y6N_U_CryOsw6FTOdKL_jpQ-&CONTENTTYPE=image/jpeg

5. Independence Bowl has two very good mid-majors teams, the Ohio Bobcats and the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks, pitted against each other. Louisana-Monroe shocked the nation by defeating Arkansas early in the season. Ohio started the season 7-0, but lost four of their last five games. This would be a good game to end that slump. Ohio's offense starts with RB Beau Blankenship. The junior HB has exactly 1500 yards on the season and averages 5.1 yards per carry on the season. Louisiana-Monroe's QB Kolton Browning leads the offense in both passing and rushing yards, with 2830 and 441 respectively. To win, the ULM QB needs to get the ball to his top receiver, Brent Leonard, who has over 1000 yards receiving on the season with 10 TDs. The winner of this game will need to take an early lead and count of their defense to stop the other team, while they score.

Bowl Predictions

Gildan New Mexico Bowl: Nevada def Arizona

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl: Utah State def Toledo

San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl: San Diego State def BYU

Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl: UCF def Ball State

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl: East Carolina def Louisiana-Lafayette 

MAACO Las Vega Bowl: Boise State def Washington

Sheraton Hawaii Bowl: Fresno State def SMU

Little Caesars Pizza Bowl: Western Kentucky University def Central Michigan

Military Bowl presented by Northrop Grumman: San Jose State def Bowling Green

Belk Bowl: Cincinnati def Duke

Bridgeport Education Holiday Bowl: UCLA def Baylor

Advocare V100 Independence Bowl: Ohio def Louisiana-Monroe

Russell Athletic Bowl: Rutgers def Virginia Tech

Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas: Texas Tech def Minnesota

Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl: Air Force def Rice

Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl: Navy def Arizona State

New Era Pinstripe Bowl: West Virginia def Syracuse

Valero Alamo Bowl: Texas def Oregon State

Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl: TCU def Michigan State

Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl: NC State def Vanderbilt 

Hyundai Sun Bowl: USC def Georgia Tech

Autozone Liberty Bowl: Tulsa def Iowa State

Chick-fil-A Bowl: LSU def Clemson

TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl: Mississippi State def Northwestern

Heart of Dallas Bowl: Oklahoma State def Purdue

Capital One Bowl: Georgia def Nebraska

Outback Bowl: South Carolina def Michigan

Rose Bowl presented by Visio (BCS): Wisconsin def Stanford

Discover Orange Bowl (BCS): Florida State def Northern Illinois 

Allstate Sugar Bowl (BCS): Florida def Louisville

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl (BCS): Oregon def Kansas State

AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic: Texas A&M def Oklahoma 

BBVA Compass Bowl: Pittsburgh def Ole Miss

GoDaddy.com Bowl: Kent State def Arkansas State

Discover BCS National Championship (BCS): Alabama def Notre Dame 

The Cleveland Cavaliers Woes So Far

The Cleveland Cavaliers have only four wins compared to seventeen losses. The team has a record worse then the Detroit Pistons, the Orlando Magic, and the Charlotte Bobcats. After a  looking promising last year, Cleveland looked ready to at least compete for a playoff spot. They have taken a turn for the worse. I am very surprised by their downfall especially with the play of  certain players.

Anderson Varejao
http://cmsimg.freep.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=C4&Date=20121203&Cat
egory=SPORTS03&ArtNo=121203048&Ref=AR&MaxW=640&Border=0&
Pistons-Lawrence-Frank-compares-Cavaliers-Anderson-Varejao-Dennis-Rodman

The team is getting very good production from it's best players. C Anderson Varejao is having a breakout season, averaging about 14 ppg and a league-leading 15.2 rpg. Of his 15.2 rpg, 6.1 of them are offensive boards. He is a candidate for NBA MVP and Most Improved Player. SG Dion Waiters, the fourth overall pick in the 2012 Draft, is averaging about 15 points a game. PG Kyrie Irving, last season NBA Rookie of the Year, is the team leader in points and assists per game with about 22 and 5 respectively. PF Tristin Thompson is also averaging about eight points and seven points per game.

Kyrie Irving broke his left index finger ten games into the season. Since then they have gone 2-10. They have beaten the Atlanta Hawks and the Philadelphia 76ers, both playoff teams, during this stretch. But, without Irving, they have lost to the 8-12 Portland Trailblazers the 7-12 Orlando Magic, the 7-14 Phoenix Suns, the 7-15 Detroit Pistons twice. You can't lose all five games against these teams. That is asking for trouble.

Cleveland's offensive has been OK, nothing spectacular, but not horrible. The defensive has not been very good. They are last in the league in opponent's field goal percentage with almost .490 percent. The reason is that  they do not have a shut-down defensive player. They really need someone with length on the outside to guard a team's best wing player. They gave up 26 points to Kevin Durant, 25 to Joe Johnson, 30 to LeBron James, and 25 to Josh Smith. 

Kyrie Irving
http://m5.paperblog.com/i/26/264726/cleveland-cavaliers-
guard-kyrie-irving-breaks-L-hWHEDT.jpeg

Cleveland does have some good news, Irving should return soon from his injury. His return should spark the team to perform better. He will create more shots for his teammates and will not be afraid to take a jumper. Even when Irving returns, the Cavs have got to play very aggressive and with an edge.  Waiters must be a more efficient scorer. He can't have an average field goal percentage of .363. Jeremy Pargo will also need to continue his good production (11.9 ppg) as Irving's back-up. He needs to shot better. If they can't turn the season around, especially if they can't make a good run and end up around the 10th-11th seed, expect a high lottery pick for Cleveland.