The biggest awards and honors were handed out Thursday during NFL Honors New Orleans. The Lions were well-represented throughout the honors and the voting, from winners to getting a vote or two. Here’s a quick rundown of how the Lions did in the various categories.
Former offensive coordinator and now Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson easily won the award for Assistant Coach of the Year. Former defensive coordinator and now New York Jets head coach Aaron Glenn finished third in voting.
Safety Kerby Joseph finished sixth in voting for Defensive Player of the Year (won by Broncos cornerback Patrick Surtain II), just missing out on being named a finalist. He finished just three points behind Eagles linebacker Zack Baun (63-60). Joseph did received a first-place vote from Doug Farrar of Athlon Sports (and formerly of Touchdown Wire).
Two Lions wide receivers received votes for Comeback Player of Year, which was won by Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. Tim Patrick, perhaps surprisingly, saw three first-place votes (Rich Gannon, Mark Craig, Bruce Murray) and Jameson Williams received a fourth-place vote.
Four Lions players received votes for Offensive Player of the Year, won by Eagles running back Saquon Barkley. Leading the way was running back Jahmyr Gibbs (one second-place vote, six 4th and one 5th). Quarterback Jared Goff had a 4th and a 5th, and wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and offensive tackle Penei Sewell each had two fifth-place votes.
Head coach Dan Campbell fell short of winning Coach of the Year. He had 19 of the 50 first-place votes, but Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell won the award thanks to receiving 25 first-place votes.
Goff was also in the running for MVP, finishing fifth in voting. In a close vote, Bills quarterback Josh Allen (27 first-place votes, 383 total points) edged out Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (23 first-place votes, 362 points) to take home his first career MVP award.