Extra Seasoning: Volume 1 – Issue 2 | …Old Winners

Awards wouldn’t be any fun if we weren’t able to reference winners since the start of the Nilbog Fantasy League. So with that in mind, I have attempted to compile the players who would have been the likely award winners in previous seasons. These accolades were not voted on by the Nilbog Associated Press, and were instead chosen singularly by the commissioner.

2019 Winners

Most Valuable Player – Christian McCaffrey

Christian McCaffrey was undoubtedly fantasy football’s best asset at the end of the his phenomenal 2019 season in which he ended RB #1. Being only 23 years old, McCaffrey looked like he had years of dominance waiting for him ahead.

Player of the Year – Christian McCaffrey

27.5 PPG, 11/11 Games Played. 10/11 Games Over 15 points. Highest: 46.7.

Christian McCaffrey finished the 2019 season with 27.5 PPG – 29% more than second place running back Dalvin Cook. McCaffrey himself was the second highest scoring player in all of fantasy football, finishing just behind Lamar Jackson. 9 of his 11 games included performances of over 20 points.

Rookie of the Year – Josh Jacobs

14.5 PPG, RB #10, 11/11 Games Played. 5/11 Games Over 15 Points. Highest: 29.8.

Josh Jacobs ended the 2019 regular season as RB #10, with 4.8 PPG more than next-best rookie running back David Montgomery; and 3.1 more PPG than the best rookie receiver Terry McLaurin. Jacobs was drafted for $160 and held all season by DReid.

Over-Performer of the Year – D.J. Chark

14.9 PPG, WR #4, 11/11 Games Played. 6/11 Games Over 15 Points. Highest: 34.4.

After not placing in any pre-season rankings, D.J. Chark Jr. finished the 2019 Nilbog regular season as WR #4 with several massive performances under his belt. He tallied 56 receptions, 837 yards, and 8 touchdowns over 11 games.

Comeback Player of the Year – Cooper Kupp

13.8 PPG, WR #7, 11/11 Games Played. 5/11 Games Over 15 Points. Highest: 35.5.

Cooper Kupp began the 2018 season as WR #3, but missed the second half of the season due to a torn ACL. In 2019, Kupp returned in extraordinary fashion – proving to be just as good, if not better, after returning from injury.

2020 Winners

Most Valuable Player – Christian McCaffrey (2)

27.3 PPG, RB #41. 3/12 Games Played. 3/3 Games Over 15 Points. Highest: 32.1. 25 Years Old.

Christian McCaffrey only had a chance to play three games in 2020. After leaving week 2 with a high ankle sprain, he returned in week 9 only to suffer a shoulder injury. Still, when the twenty-five year old was on the field he was as dynamic as ever, earning him his second MVP award in as many years.

Player of the Year – Dalvin Cook

23.5 PPG, RB #1. 11/12 Games Played. 9/11 Games Over 15 Points. Highest: 49.6.

Dalvin Cook finished the Nilbog regular season as RB #1 despite missing week 5 with an adductor strain, averaging a full 3 PPG more than second place running back Alvin Kamara. 7 of Cook’s 11 Games featured performances over 20 points.

Rookie of the Year – Justin Jefferson

14.9 PPG, WR #4. 12/12 Games Played. 6/12 Games Over 15 Points. Highest: 37.1.

In a year of exceptional rookies, Justin Jefferson managed to establish himself as the most exceptional. By the end of 2020, he was widely considered one of dynasty fantasy football’s top fifteen players.

Over-Performer of the Year – James Robinson

16.9 PPG, RB #4. 12/12 Games Played. 6/12 Games Over 15 Points. Highest: 31.7.

James Robinson may not have made the waves that fellow-rookie Justin Jefferson did, but he finished the season with the best stats of any rookie despite going into the season undrafted.

Comeback Player of the Year – Ben Roethlisberger

19.04 PPG, QB #11. 12/12 Games Played. 8/12 Games Over 15 Points. Highest: 29.32.

After missing most of the 2019 season with an injured elbow, 38 year old Ben Roethlisberger returned in 2020 as the QB #1, staying surprisingly consistent and never posting a game under 10 points.