Associated Press issued firm voting guidelines but the QB may still cash longshot tickets
Last June, the Associated Press clarified voting parameters for the NFL Comeback Player of the Year award, specifying the honor should only reward players returning from injury or illness. This stance implied that players coming back from poor play were no longer eligible. Then, during the season in October, the AP reinforced those parameters.
This all comes after Joe Flacco won last year’s award, promptly sparking conversation. Flacco was out of football until he signed with the Cleveland Browns during the season in November. Despite not being actively injured or recovering from a significant setback, Flacco performed well to lead the Browns to the playoffs. This raised questions, as Flacco’s story did not strictly fit the traditional narrative of returning from injury or illness either.
In response, Rob Maaddi, the AP senior NFL writer who oversees the voting, emphasized that the spirit of the award should recognize players who have overcome illness, injury, or other circumstances that led to them missing time the previous season. The portion of “other circumstances” is vague and thus allows for various interpretations.
As it stands now, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow is the current betting favorite with -175 odds at DraftKings and -210 at FanDuel. Burrow fits the criteria as a result of his season-ending wrist injury in Week 10 of last season. He returned this year to post career-best statistics and has arguably been the NFL’s best player. Burrow ranks first in total passing yards (4641), first in passing touchdowns (42) and second in QBR (76.7).
Meanwhile, Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold is the second betting favorite with +120 odds at DraftKings and +150 odds at FanDuel. Darnold’s story is where the conversation gets tricky. Darnold is not coming off an injury. Instead, like Flacco, Darnold is a journeyman that was previously relegated to backup status.
Darnold has led the NFL’s biggest surprise season. The Vikings are 14-2 with a chance to earn the NFC’s top seed in the regular season finale, if they beat the 14-2 Detroit Lions on Sunday night. On the year, Darnold ranks fourth in total passing yards (4,153) and fifth in passing touchdowns (35).
Dec 1, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold (14) passes against the Arizona Cardinals in the second quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Brad Rempel-Imagn Images
All season Darnold has had longshot odds for Comeback Player of the Year, largely because of Maaddi’s detailed parameters. In fact, just a few weeks ago, Darnold was +1600 and even last week Darnold had +600 odds,
Pro Football Talk confirmed with the Associated Press that votes for Darnold will be allowed, even though the AP reinforced its preferred parameters in October.