Ja'Marr won the triple crown last year and didn't come close to winning the award. So why did JSN deserve it this year?
Super Bowl Sunday is just two days away, which will mark the end of the incredible 2025 NFL season. With the big game just days away, the NFL Awards were finally announced Thursday night. Matthew Stafford won the Most Valuable Player after leading the league in pass yards and touchdowns, Myles Garrett became the second unanimous Defensive Player of the Year in NFL history after breaking the single-season sack record, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba won the Offensive Player of the Year after leading the league in receiving yards.
Many can argue the case for Drake Maye over Stafford for the MVP award, but another questionable decision is the voting for the OPOY award. Christian McCaffrey had a respectable second-place in the voting with 223 points and 12 first-place votes compared to Smith-Njigba’s 272 with 14 first-place votes. Although the San Francisco 49ers running back was just eighth in rushing yards on the season, he had over 2,000 all-purpose yards with 17 total touchdowns.
Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (11) | © Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
This voting discrepancy truly brings back the question of why Saquon Barkley was far and above the OPOY award winner for 2024. Unlike McCaffrey, he led the league in rushing yards with over 2,000. However, Barkley only beat Derrick Henry in rushing yards by 84, while having fewer yards per carry, rushing touchdowns, and total touchdowns.
Meanwhile, Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase won only the fifth triple crown since the NFL merger and just the second since 2006. Chase, however, did not barely lead the league in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns. The former No. 5 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft had 175 more yards, 12 more receptions, and four more touchdowns than second place in every category.
Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase (1) | © Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
With this receiving domination in mind, Chase still somehow didn’t win the OPOY award. Not only did he not win, but he was voted third place with 166 points and zero first-place votes. Ahead of him was Barkley with 396 points and 34 first-place votes, followed by Lamar Jackson with 182 points and 12 first-place votes.
Smith-Njigba’s unbelievable season should not have anything taken away from it. He is a large reason why his team is playing in the Super Bowl this year. With that in mind, this could be the exact reason why voters were supportive of him over Chase in the year prior. While Smith-Njigba’s team was the top seed in the NFC this season, Chase’s team failed to make the playoffs in the AFC last season.
The voting for MVP should always have a large part to do with how successful a player’s team was. But for the Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, record shouldn’t matter. Clearly the voters agree to some degree, given that Garrett’s Cleveland Browns finished at the bottom of their division with a 5-12 record.