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Saturday, February 13, 2016

Antonio Brown, runner-up for NFL OPOY, but Not a MVP Vote

On the Saturday night before the Super Bowl, the NFL had its award show.  Antonio Brown got the Fantasy Player of the Year, and he got runner-up for the NFL Offensive Player of the Year, behind Newton.  Nothing unexpected.  But, he did not garner any MVP votes. Newton got 48 votes, Tom Brady got 1 vote, and Carson Palmer also received one vote.  Like usual, it is all quarterbacks, as it is a quarterback driven league.  Even so, why not vote for Antonio Brown?
A wide receiver has never won the MVP, so there was a very big uphill climb for Brown.  But, let's look at the stats.  He had 136 catches for 1,834 yards and 10 touchdowns.  That was without Ben Roethlisberger for about five games.  With Roethlisberger. he would've easily gotten 150 catches and probably 2,000 yards, and possibly the record of 1,964 yards receiving in a season set by Calvin Johnson in 2012.  One would think that Brown would break that if Roethlisberger stays healthy.
Secondly, let's look at his numbers against the Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos.  He went for 16 catches and 189 yards with two touchdowns.  That was all against Chris Harris Jr., an undrafted cornerback who hadn't let a touchdown in two years.  Two years.  That was his second 15+ catch game on the season, the other coming against the Oakland Raiders, including a quarter without Big Ben. 
What did Cam Newton do against this defense?  18-41, 265 passing yards and one interception and a fumble.  What about Tom Brady? 27-56, 310 yards, one touchdown and two picks.  Combined, they scored 28 points. The Steelers scored 24 in one half and 34 in total in one game, as well as scoring 16 against them in the Divisional Round without Brown.
How important is Brown?  If the Steelers have him against the Broncos, the Steelers win the game easily.  MVP stands for most valuable player, right?  Why not Brown?  I don't think he should've won it, as Cam Newton had a great season.  But, Brown should get more consideration.
 This guy is 5'11, but he's still the best receiver in the NFL by far.  He was a zero star recruit.  He was a sixth round draft pick. He keeps getting better, I think he'll break some more records, and he will continue to garner more attention from voters. 








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