As the ball drops in the new year, let’s take a look back at the highs and lows of the NFL world in 2024…
Best return to the NFL: Jim Harbaugh. A year ago, Harbaugh was on the road to a national championship with the University of Michigan. Now, he’s back in the NFL playoffs, leading the Chargers to a big comeback from a 5-12 deficit in 2023, and proving he can win wherever he goes.
Worst Fool: Lachie Rice. The Kansas City Chiefs receiver took the bold step of participating in a drag race on the North Central Expressway in Dallas in March. Fortunately, no one was killed in the subsequent wreck, and the man who put his promising career at risk was charged with multiple felonies. It was also with a bad look that he left the accident scene.
Best Player of the Year: Sam Darnold He was once kicked to the curb by the New York Jets, who drafted the quarterback third overall in the 2018 draft, but who knew? Darnold (who also made pit stops in Carolina and San Francisco) finally made good on his big commitment after signing with the Minnesota Vikings on a one-year deal. We’ll see if this extends to a long-term deal after the Vikings selected currently rehabbing JJ McCarthy in the first round of April’s draft. Either way, by leading his team to one of the best records in the NFL (14-2), Darnold is back on the map as an MVP candidate and a legitimate QB option in a league that has always lacked one. was named.
Worst political stunt: Nick Bosa. The 49ers defensive end showed off his bad manners by barging into a live postgame interview on NBC and wearing a MAGA hat. He was ultimately fined $11,255, not for supporting Donald Trump, but for violating the league’s uniform policy. Although Botha considered this to be money well spent, his reluctance to explain his position was disturbing on another level. It was in stark contrast to a few years ago when another prominent 49er, Colin Kaepernick, proactively explained why he took a knee during a game. national anthem.
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Best Emergency Kicker: Matthew Wright. Wright, a journeyman who has had stints with eight NFL teams since 2019, including multiple stints with four teams, scored a 31-yard walk-off field goal in December to give the Chiefs their ninth straight A-A team. -Made it possible to win the West title. Wright, 28, is on his third tour with the Chiefs, kicking for four teams during the 2024 calendar year. Incidentally, the Chiefs became the first team in NFL history to win three games in a season with walk-off field goals by three different kickers. And, coincidentally, Wright was waived by the Chiefs three days after winning the AFC Special Teams Player of the Week award when Harrison Butker was placed on injured reserve.
Worst return on investment: Kirk Cousins. In March, the Atlanta Falcons signed the veteran quarterback back from a torn Achilles tendon to a four-year, $180 million free agent contract with $100 million guaranteed. Cousins, who had an NFL-high 16 interceptions in December, was benched and replaced by first-round rookie Michael Penix Jr. Granted, Falcons owner Arthur Blank is rich. But the team, which hasn’t made the playoffs since 2017, could have used the money it invested in Cousins, 34, to acquire other talent. And Sam Darnold, Cousins’ successor with the Vikings, turned out to be a bargain on a one-year, $10 million contract. The Cousins trade also cost Atlanta a 2025 fifth-round pick because the league determined the team violated its anti-corruption policy.
Best Improvisation: Josh Allen It’s been a season of big plays for the Buffalo Bills quarterback. He became the first player in league history to score 40 touchdowns (passing and rushing) in five consecutive seasons. No play was as big as Allen’s 26-yard touchdown run against the Chiefs in November, when the quarterback went off script and jumped out of the pocket instead of throwing a short pass on a fourth-and-out at second base. . The win derailed the Chiefs’ hopes for a perfect season and ended their winning streak at 15.
Worst legendary influence: Aaron Rodgers. This latest tour with the New York Jets didn’t go well for the four-time NFL MVP. After the 2023 season was derailed by a torn Achilles tendon, the encore included the firing of manager Robert Saleh and the worst season of Rodgers’ career (to this point), going 4-12. No, reuniting with Davante Adams didn’t change things much. All this calls for a retreat from the darkness.
Rookie of the Year Legend: Jayden Daniels is the star quarterback the Washington Commanders have been praying for, including his 52-yard Hail Mary touchdown pass to Noah Brown in the highlight package in October. The No. 2 overall draft pick led the Commanders to their first winning record since 2016 and their first playoff berth since 2020, earning him NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. In the process, Daniels became the first quarterback in its 105-year history to do so. NFL players threw touchdown passes in the final 30 seconds of five different wins. The stuff of legend.
Worst trash talker: Tilik Stevenson. The Chicago Bears cornerback taunted Washington fans as they headed toward the end zone in preparation for a desperate last-second attack by the Commanders. Then he ate some serious crow. Not only did the managers execute a miracle pass, but Stephenson diverted the football after he was busy trying to get into position to defend a “Hail Mary.” Oops. Moral of this episode: Shut up and play.
Best Celebration: Josh Metellus and Camryn Bynum. The Vikings’ safeties celebrated an interception in mid-December by perfectly recreating the club scene dance performed by Sean and Marlon Wayans in the movie “White Chicks.” It’s hard to pick one because no one celebrates like well-rehearsed and prepared Vikings. Other creative efforts include the “secret handshake” from “The Parent Trap” and the choreographed “We’re All in This Together” dance from “High School Musical.”
Best Free Agent Pickup Player: Saquon Barkley. Life as a Philadelphia Eagle ended with the star entering the regular season finale with just 101 yards needed to become the ninth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards and break the single-season rushing record (2,105 yards). Life is a leap forward for running backs. For Barkley to be able to hit the mark against the New York Giants is a reminder of how he got there. His former team made a huge mistake by not being able to land him on a long-term extension and instead choosing to invest in released quarterback Daniel Jones. And there’s rare footage from HBO’s “Hard Knocks,” which was recorded while Giants co-owner John Mara was mulling Barkley’s move to an NFC East rival. Mara thought this. “It’s going to be hard to sleep.” What a nightmare for Mara.
Worst commencement speech: Harrison Butker. The Chiefs kicker’s speech to graduates of Benedictine College, a Catholic liberal arts school in Atchison, Kansas, sparked such backlash that the NFL issued a statement distancing itself from Butker’s comments. Kicker addressed abortion, homosexuality, Pride Month, COVID-19 vaccinations and urged female graduates to embrace becoming homemakers. The Chiefs did not follow suit with newspaper editorials or online petitions calling for the star specialist to be cut, but instead issued statements about separation of church and state, performance and free speech. They signed Butker to a four-year, $25.6 million contract extension. This made him the highest-paid kicker in the NFL.
Best Pick 6: Leonard Williams. He rushed for 92 yards. Then apply oxygen. The Seattle Seahawks defensive lineman made his return to the Big Apple in early December, setting fire to his former team and Aaron Rodgers with a long-distance rumble to pay dirt. It was the longest interception return touchdown ever by a D-lineman, and the longest by a D-lineman. Athletes weighing over 300 pounds since the turn of the century. Williams, who played five seasons each with the Giants and Jets, also had two sacks on his banner day.
The worst hangover from the Super Bowl. San Francisco 49ers. This season has been a disaster for the defending NFC champions (6-10), who have fallen from first place to last place in the NFC West. Where did it go off track? Injuries, especially to star running back Christian McCaffrey, contributed significantly to their plight. But things might have been different if 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan had elected to kickoff against the Chiefs after winning the overtime coin toss.
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