We’ve talked Offensive Rookie of the Year, Defensive Rookie of the Year, and even the 2020 NFL MVP.
Now onto the comeback stories.
Comeback Player of the Year has been a hot topic lately with the latest signing of Cam Newton to New England, and it had me wondering, just how much of a race will we have this year? There are plenty of stars looking to bounce back in 2020-21, and we have complied a list of the ones we think have the best shot at taking home Comeback Player of the Year.
Of course like last time we will have a list of my top five, plus an honorable mention to start things off.
Honorable Mention – Rob Gronkowski
It is easy to think Gronk should be higher on this list, but I simply don’t expect him to impact the game enough to get serious consideration for this award. There are so many mouths to feed down in Tampa Bay, and Gronk isn’t going to be high on that pecking order. The only thing he has going for him currently is his connection with Brady from New England, and that is just enough to get him the honorable mention spot.
Derwin James
The Los Angeles Chargers defense is one of the most talented and versatile units in the league. You have players like Casey Hayward, and Joey Bosa already on the team. Then they drafted Kenneth Murray, and signed Chris Harris Jr, to make this defense even more solid. A healthy Derwin James turns this Corvette into a Lamborghini though.
After an extremely productive rookie campaign, James was sidelined with a stress fracture in his foot forcing him to miss most of the 2019 season. If he can put together a full season, and the Chargers defense looks as good as they are supposed to, James could find himself as a real contender for Come Back Player of the Year.
Todd Gurley
Though he didn’t miss much of last year, Todd Gurley should definitely still be considered for Comeback Player of the Year. The Gurley hype train might have died down once he was released from the Los Angeles Rams, but I personally think he has a few good seasons left to put out.
I think it is good for him to get a new start, and what better place than somewhere you called home for three years. The Atlanta Falcons run a zone blocking scheme, which favors Gurley’s play style. The volume should be there if Gurley can stay in the starting line up for the Falcons. He rushed for over 800 yards in his limited reps with the Rams last season, the question is just how healthy is his knee?
AJ Green
The Bengals might have been the worst team in the NFL last year, but a big reason for that was the lack of their 7x Pro Bowl receiver, A.J. Green. In my opinion, A.J. Green is one of the most underrated wide receivers in the NFL. In six of his nine seasons with the Bengals, Green recorded 1,000+ yards. He had five straight years of over 100 targets, 1,000 yards and 6+ touchdowns. With Joe Burrow now under center, and a full year to learn Zac Taylor’s offense, things should be running a lot more smoothly for Cincinnati.
Cam Newton
Let the revenge tour begin.
This off season the Carolina Panthers cleaned ship, and started anew by releasing Cam Newton back in March. For a while we waited, and watched as Newton posted his IG training videos. Now he is officially back, and the starting quarterback for the New England Patriots. Newton feels like the Panthers gave up on him, and is highly motivated to get back into MVP form.
Ben Roethlisberger
Big Ben was No. 1 on my list before the Cam Newton signing, but I definitely expected Newton to be signed at some point this off season. After releasing his hype tape for his comeback season, how could he not be No. 1 on this list?
Big Ben is easily my favorite to win Comeback Player of the Year. Despite what some may claim, I think he still has plenty left in his tank. He has plenty of weapons in a pass happy offense. Even if he struggles early I think it will be hard to compete with Ben Roethlisberger’s stats in 2020. Especially if the Steelers come back to compete for the AFC North title.