Bleacher Report's 2022 NFL Midseason Awards

Though the NFL season lacks a midseason mark for every team—idle weekends and a 17-game season will do that—each one has crossed the halfway point.

Naturally, then, it's time to distribute fake hardware.

In addition to Fantasy Football Player of the Year, we are handing out versions of the seven marquee Associated Press awards revealed at the annual NFL Honors event.

While the choices were subjective, voting trends were considered. For example, the MVP accolade is effectively a quarterback award, but running backs (and wide receivers, more recently) have traditionally been strong contenders for Offensive Player of the Year.

The discussion isn't quite as simple as "which team has the best record?" for Coach of the Year. However, the Philadelphia Eagles and Minnesota Vikings boast the prime COY contenders and are an NFL-best 8-1.

Also, Philly wrecked Minnesota earlier this season. Tiebreaker goes to Nick Sirianni over Kevin O'Connell.

Besides, the Eagles have assembled a more dominant season than Minnesota. They've tallied an NFC-best plus-79 point differential with one of the league's most efficient offenses behind a career year from quarterback Jalen Hurts.

Sirianni has sharpened the Eagles, who have an NFL-best plus-13 turnover margin, from a playoff team into a Super Bowl threat.

Minnesota's ascent means the COY race is far from decided. But for now, Sirianni is the deserving choice.

This two-man race is hugely compelling.

Let's start here: New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley edges Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith for Comeback Player of the Year. But there's a convincing case on either side of the conversation.

Barkley has been the most important player for the Giants, who have surged to 7-2. New York, which ranks 30th in passing yards per game, leans heavily on Barkley for its production. He has responded with an NFL-high 125.3 scrimmage yards per game, showing that his torn ACL was only a temporary setback.

Smith, meanwhile, is holding a starting role for the first time in eight years. He has top-10 marks in passing yards (2,474) and yards per attempt (7.8) plus 17 passing scores to four interceptions. Seattle has far exceeded low expectations and leads the NFC West at 6-4.

Yes, the Seahawks beat the Giants, but the comparison of a quarterback and running back is much different than a head-to-head for coaches.

Barkley is the midseason pick. Smith is right there.

You could take any number of directions with Fantasy Football Player of the Year. As far as point totals go—and that's the goal, right?—Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen and Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes have collected 234.9 points in points-per-reception leagues.

This perspective, though, is identifying a standout based on production vs. average draft position.

In that case, the choice is clearly Jalen Hurts.

Among the top 10 PPR scorers, only two players—Hurts (No. 53) and Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields (No. 146)—didn't hold a top-30 ADP. Fields has been incredible lately, but Hurts has been a consistent source of points.

Heading into Week 11, Hurts is third with 24.0 fantasy points per game and fourth with 216.1 total. He has topped 20 points in seven of Philly's nine games and still provided 16.9 and 16 points in his "bad" outings.

Not bad for a fifth- or sixth-round selection.

Unfortunately for the New York Jets, the dream of a sweep has vanished. Running back Breece Hall is sidelined for the rest of 2022 with an ACL injury.

Sauce Gardner is still tracking for defensive honors.

Selected with the No. 4 pick, he has become a lockdown cornerback for the Jets. Gardner has surrendered a measly 4.4 yards per target, allowing only 226 yards and one touchdown on 51 attempts. He's also registered an NFL-best 13 passes defended.

Rounding out the stat sheet, the Cincinnati product has 44 tackles with three for loss and two interceptions. Gardner has been a pivotal piece in the rise of the New York defense.

Down the stretch, he will need to hold off Seattle corner Tariq Woolen. The fifth-round pick has generated a remarkable seven takeaways via five interceptions and two fumble recoveries.

Sorry, Seahawks fans, another narrow miss.

The bad news for the Houston Texans is they're 1-7-1. The promising side is they've found a rising star in rookie back Dameon Pierce, a fourth-round pick.

Entering Week 11, he ranked fifth in the NFL with 772 rushing yards and 4.7 yards per carry. Pierce has also caught 22 passes for 126 yards, totaling 898 scrimmage yards and four touchdowns.

The player to watch is Ken Walker III, who has a shot to overtake Pierce.

However, the Seattle standout has four outings of 30 yards or fewer. He backed up Rashaad Penny until the latter's season-ending ankle injury, and his initial role, for now, is holding him below Pierce.

Are we certain Micah Parsons isn't a product of a create-a-player feature in, like, the metaverse or something?

In high school, he was a prolific pass-rusher. Penn State turned him into a middle linebacker. In the NFL, the Dallas Cowboys have used Parsons as an off-ball backer and edge-rusher.

And he just keeps dominating.

Parsons has recorded 43 tackles with 10 stops for loss, eight sacks, 21 pressures and 14 quarterback hits. He has forced two fumbles and recovered one, which he returned 36 yards for a touchdown.

New England Patriots pass-rusher Matthew Judon deserves a mention for his NFL-high 11.5 sacks, but Parsons is the defender to beat.

Somehow, some way, Justin Jefferson snatched the ball in the above photo. Good luck surpassing that catch of the year nominee.

Minnesota's superstar is due an even greater award, though.

The third-year receiver is having a Cooper Kupp-type impact for the Vikings. Through nine games, Jefferson has racked up 69 catches for 1,060 yards and four touchdowns. He's generated more receiving yards than Minnesota's next four highest pass-catchers combined.

At his pace—117.8 yards per game—the LSU product will set an NFL single-season receiving record.

Jefferson would become the third receiver to earn the OPOY honor in the last four years. And if he doesn't, there's a decent shot Miami Dolphins star Tyreek Hill will instead.

When the Kansas City Chiefs traded Tyreek Hill to the Dolphins, the NFL wondered how the trade would affect Patrick Mahomes.

The answer? Not that much, apparently.

But the takeaway isn't a dig at Hill; rather, it's a credit to Mahomes. He's compiled NFL-high totals of 2,936 yards and 25 touchdowns through the air plus 215 yards and a score on the ground.

The Mahomes-led Chiefs have scored an NFL-leading 30.0 points per game and hold a 7-2 record, standing atop the AFC.

On the other hand, Hill has been a critical piece of Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa's becoming an extraordinarily efficient passer and MVP candidate. Tagovailoa's two-game absence because of a concussion drags down his candidacy, though.

Mahomes, Tagovailoa, Jalen Hurts and Josh Allen are expected to highlight the MVP discussion down the stretch.