Freischaltung » Some likely Hall of Famers are in the mix there.

By the time every NFL team has played eight games Ugo Amadi Jersey , there are some heavily established favorites for The Associated Press NFL awards that are handed out on Super Bowl eve.Not this year.MVP? Lots of candidates — and not just quarterbacks.Coach of the Year? Nearly every division has a contender.Comeback Player?So the AP polled a few of the 50 voters for the awards, including genuine Hall of Famer James Lofton. The theme was clear: There isn’t much clarity as we head into the final eight weeks of the schedule.MVPThis honor has gone to a quarterback the past five seasons and 10 of 11. Two running backs, Adrian Peterson in 2012 and LaDainian Tomlinson in 2006, broke through the QB domination in the past dozen years.Lofton and some others select Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.“So good you just can’t take your eyes off of him,” the CBS analyst says.“Maybe this opinion changes next week, given the stellar competition that includes (Todd) Gurley and (Drew) Brees,” adds USA Today’s Jarrett Bell. “Maybe not, as the kid keeps showing up. A first-year starter as quarterback? Hey, Mahomes is like the new Kurt Warner.”Paul Domowitch of the Philadelphia Daily News opts for Brees. Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk prefers Gurley.Don’t forget about Tom Brady, Adam Thielen or Philip Rivers, and perhaps even a defensive force such as J.J. Watt.COACHAnother wide-open field headed by, according to Jenny Vrentas of Monday Morning Quarterback, Kansas City’s Andy Reid.“I selected Andy Reid … for his ability to seamlessly transition from Alex Smith to Mahomes,” Vrentas explains. “He’s been so invested in Mahomes’ development that he sits with him on the bench in between offensive series, going over what they see and how they’ll attack the opponent next. Reid has demonstrated an ability to keep his offense fresh and tailored to his players, updating his West Coast system with spread concepts pulled from the college ranks.”Bob Glauber of Newsday points to last year’s winner, Sean McVay of the Rams.“He’s one of the brightest minds in the game, and at 32, is proving not only to be a brilliant play caller, but an exceptional leader as well,” Glauber says.Not far behind in our little poll: the Saints’ Sean Payton, the Texans’ Bill O’Brien, the Bears‘ Matt Nagy, and the Chargers’ Anthony Lynn Dwayne Haskins Jersey , whose team “plays a road game every week,” Lofton notes.COMEBACK PLAYERRarely has there been such an impressive group vying for an award no one really wants to win considering the implications of a comeback.From Watt to Peterson to Aaron Rodgers, from Andrew Luck to Carson Wentz to Deshaun Watson, from Odell Beckham Jr. to Richard Sherman — WOW!“It’s either Andrew Luck or Watt,” says Williams, “but Watt has returned to being one of the best at his position. He is playing at an All-Pro and Pro Bowl level. Luck is not one of the top-five quarterbacks in the NFL and maybe not in the top 10.”Eric Adelson of Yahoo Sports goes for the Colts quarterback.“Can’t imagine the frustration he’s faced,” Adelson says. “A pro’s pro.”Vrentas picks Watt.“The surgery Watt had last October to put his leg back together after a tibial plateau fracture was so complicated that the surgeons couldn’t even be certain that it would work, and that his leg would be able to bear the full weight of his body while running full speed,” she explains. “Watt, who has nine sacks in nine games, was undeterred. He wasn’t back to full strength in the season opener but has steadily gotten better each week, a scary thought for opponents.”OFFENSIVE PLAYERAnother free-for-all, with Gurley, Mahomes, Thielen, Brees, Michael Thomas and James Conner getting consideration.“Before it’s done, he could wind up as MVP,” Bell says of Gurley, his choice in this category. “Ditto for Brees. Running backs don’t get the same love as quarterbacks in the pass-centric environment of the NFL. But if Gurley breaks LaDainian Tomlinson’s single-season TD record and the Rams keep winning big, people will have to take notice. Then again, Brees has a few records and has never been MVP.”Domowitch, a Brees supporter for MVP, puts Mahomes here. So does Williams.DEFENSIVE PLAYERThis category could be a two-horse race between a pair of thoroughbreds previously honored with the award: Aaron Donald and Watt.“Now that’s a man who don’t need no stinking training camp D.K. Metcalf Jersey ,” Bell says of Donald.Eric Adelson of Yahoo Sports prefers Donald, as well.“A game wrecker on every down,” Adelson says.Adds Glauber: “Donald is a disruptive force in the middle and already has 10 sacks. The only problem for him — and the Rams — is that teams will often go to great lengths to shut him down. Thus, the constant double teams he has to fight through.”Lofton likes what Khalil Mack has done in Chicago: “Mack turned the Bears from pretenders to contenders.” But this train could be a runaway for Donald and Mack.OFFENSIVE ROOKIENo contest.“He’s the only good thing going for an awful Giants team,” Glauber says of Giants RB Saquon Barkley. “Until the Giants figure out their quarterback situation, he’ll be wasted in this offense.”But not lost in the awards prognostications.“On pace for more than 2,000 total yards — on a bad team,” Adelson notes.DEFENSIVE ROOKIEChargers safety Derwin James has gotten lots of love, but there’s no runaway leader.“Darius Leonard and Denzel Ward make this an interesting race for the award down the stretch,” Williams says.Glauber leans to Leonard: “Halfway through the season, he not only led all NFL rookies with 88 tackles, he led all NFL players in that category. He also has four sacks and three forced fumbles and has already won defensive rookie of the week honors twice.” HOUSTON (AP) — After throwing just one pass in his return to game action last week, Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson was determined to stay on the field a little longer on Saturday night.Watson used his one series to march the Texans down the field, going 5 of 8 for 73 yards, capped by a 1-yard touchdown pass to Bruce Ellington in Houston’s 16-13 exhibition victory over the San Francisco 49ers,“I guess he was 5 for 8, but I think he had three drops on the drive,” Texans coach Bill O’Brien said. “I thought he did some nice things. We were able to play at a pretty good tempo and get in the end zone so that was good.”It was a much lengthier outing than the preseason opener in Kansas City, when Watson attempted just one pass in his return to game action after missing the second half of his rookie season with a torn ACL.“I felt good just to be in a game,” Watson said. “Try to get my feet wet. It was a good drive for us.”Watson’s efficiency matched a nice opening drive from San Francisco’s Jimmy Garoppolo, who threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to Trent Taylor.Garoppolo’s night ended after his second drive when a deep pass to Dante Pettis bounced off Pettis’ hands and was intercepted by Johnson Bademosi. Garoppolo was 10 of 12 for 136 yards and said there were plenty of “simple mistakes” that the team can work on correcting before the regular season begins.49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said he was tempted to send his first-string offense out for a third series.“I wanted them to get going more,” Shanahan said. “I didn’t think our execution was great in the first game. I didn’t think it was great in this game either, but I just wanted to give them more time to play.”Backup quarterbacks Brandon Weeden for Houston and C.J. Beathard for San Francisco struggled to move the ball and the game was tied at 7 at halftime.Weeden completed 7 of 15 passes for 50 yards, while Beathard was 10 of 17 for 82 yards.With Texans kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn nursing an undisclosed injury http://www.seahawksauthorizedshops.com/authentic-cody-barton-jersey , recent acquisition Nick Rose made a 32-yard field goal in the third quarter to put Houston up 10-7. Robbie Gould tied the game at 10 later in the third with a 39-yarder.After Gould made a 41-yard field goal with 1:41 remaining, Houston third-string quarterback Joe Webb led the Texans down the field and found Vyncint Smith for a 41-yard touchdown with 27 seconds remaining.With San Francisco down two running backs, including starter Jerick McKinnon (calf) and Matt Breida (shoulder), Jeremy McNichols got the start for the 49ers, rushing for 28 yards on 10 carries. Most offensive starters played the first two series.Defensively, starting cornerbacks Richard Sherman and K’Waun Williams did not play.Texans defensive end J.J. Watt, linebacker Jadeveon Clowney, safety Tyrann Mathieu, cornerback Johnathan Joseph and several other Texans defensive starters didn’t play. Offensively, starting wide receivers DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller did not play.NATIONAL ANTHEMNo players from the 49ers or the Texans kneeled during the national anthem, although 49ers receiver Marquise Goodwin did raise his right fist for the duration. Linebacker Eli Harold kneeled during the anthem the past two years, but stood on Saturday night.INJURIES49ers: Backup OL Erik Magnuson suffered a hamstring injury in the third quarter and limped to the locker room. DEs Solomon Thomas (concussion) and Arik Armstead (hamstring), TE George Kittle (shoulder), Breida (shoulder), LB Malcolm Smith (hamstring) and McKinnon (calf) were inactive.Texans: Starting CB Kevin Johnson suffered a concussion after defending a pass from Garoppolo on the first drive. Johnson landed awkwardly on his shoulder and was treated on the field by the team’s medical staff for nearly five minutes before being escorted to the locker room. O’Brien said after the game he was taken to the hospital and that he was doing OK. … Texans WR Sammie Coates Jr. also suffered a concussion.LOWERING THE HEADSan Francisco was twice flagged for the league’s new penalties for lowering the head to initiate contact, both in the second quarter. The first came on a punt return and was charged to Raheem Mostert and the second came against Jeremiah Attaochu while rushing the passer.PENALTIES GALORE“Extremely disappointing. There were way too many penalties. We’ll look at each one. Some you can control and some you can’t, but they really hurt us. They were unacceptable.” — Shanahan on San Francisco’s 15 penalties for 140 yardsHE SAID IT“I feel more comfortable just being out there with the guys longer. Last season, I came off the streets. This year, we have time to work on plays, work on being better.” –Texans WR Bruce EllingtonNEXT UPThe 49ers (1-1) return to action on Saturday, Aug. 25, at the Colts.The Texans (2-0) visit the Los Angeles Rams on Saturday, Aug. 25.