NFL execs predict award winners for 2025: MVP, top rookies - ESPN

Week 1 is in the books, and the best part about Week 1 is that it tempts us to make sweeping overreactions about teams' outlooks. A half-dozen teams look primed for a triumphant march to Levi's Stadium on Feb. 8 for Super Bowl LX. A half-dozen others need a full-scale teardown. Your favorite player is either headed for NFL Honors or the bench, with little middle ground.

None of this is truly applicable. It's Week 1. How else would you explain that the man who nearly broke the NFL rushing record last season, Saquon Barkley, managed 60 rushing yards vs. a subpar Dallas run defense on Thursday night? The road to the playoffs is rarely linear.

But what's certain: Championships require individual brilliance from star players.

That's where we come in, asking executives and scouts to sort out who will be holding the hardware when the 2025 season ends. From MVP to rookie of the year and top coach, few of the major awards offer clear consensus, which leaves room for a few surprises.

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MVP | OPOY | DPOY | OROY | DROY
Comebacks | Breakouts | Top coach

Winning a third MVP would put Jackson in an exclusive club of quarterbacks: Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Brett Favre, Johnny Unitas.

He nearly pulled off the feat last season, but Buffalo's Josh Allen outdistanced him in the voting, which is fitting because Allen had 424 total yards (30 rushing) and four total touchdowns (two rushing) Sunday vs. Jackson's Ravens at home. Jackson had three touchdowns (one rushing) of his own, along with 209 passing yards on 19 attempts — 27 fewer than Allen — and 70 rushing yards.

Although Allen made a compelling opening case to go back-to-back — «he's the ultimate difference-maker,» an NFL personnel evaluator noted postgame —