NFL

Explaining the NFL MVP controversy, plus Super Bowl 2025 picks and the Steelers are headed to Ireland

by
SaC Bot
February 7, 2025

NEW ORLEANS — Welcome to the Friday edition of the Pick Six newsletter!

Before we get to today’s newsletter, I have some good news and some great news (we don’t do bad news here). The first bit of good news is that this ISN’T your final newsletter before the Super Bowl and that’s because you’ll be getting a special SUPER BOWL LIX edition of the newsletter around 11 a.m. ET on Sunday.

As for the great news: I’ll be at the game on Sunday, and if you follow me on Twitter or Instagram, I promise to keep sharing photos until my phone breaks. Let’s hope it doesn’t break.

Since we have a Super Bowl newsletter coming on Sunday, we’ll be focusing on a few other things today like the WILD finish in the MVP voting at the NFL Honors ceremony last night. We’ll go over the winners of all the NFL’s major awards, plus take a quick look at this year’s Hall of Fame class.

Basically, we have got a huge newsletter today, so let’s get to the rundown.

As always, here’s your daily reminder to tell all your friends to sign up for the newsletter. Or you can tell people you run into at the grocery store. That also works. To get them signed up, all you have to do is click here.

1. Josh Allen takes home controversial MVP award over Lamar Jackson

The MVP award is voted on by 50 voters who are all selected by the Associated Press. Those same 50 voters also vote on the All-Pro team, and Jackson was voted the first-team All-Pro quarterback. Jackson got 30 of the 50 first-place votes in the All-Pro voting while Allen only got 18, which is important to note here because the All-Pro quarterback almost always ends up getting the MVP.

In any season where a quarterback won MVP over the past 50 years, there were only two instances where the first-team All-Pro quarterback DIDN’T win MVP and both came under peculiar circumstances:

1987: John Elway won during a strike-shortened season where he only played in 12 games
2003: Steve McNair was a co-MVP with Peyton Manning, who was the first-team All-Pro quarterback, so the first-team All-Pro still won the award this season.

In the MVP voting, a few voters changed their mind and gave their first-place vote to Allen.

MVP votes (first-second-third-fourth-fifth)

Allen: 27-22-1-0-0: 383 points
Jackson: 23-26-0-1-0: 362 points

If you look at the All-Pro voting compared to the MVP voting, Jackson lost seven first-place votes, but Allen gained nine. And keep in mind, the same 50 voters vote for both the All-Pro team and MVP.

All voters are required to turn in their votes shortly after the regular season ends, so postseason play isn’t factored into the voting process here.

Not only did Jackson lose several first-place votes in the MVP race, but someone actually gave him a FOURTH-PLACE vote. (We took at close look at that situation, which you can check that out here).

After the ceremony, Allen even admitted that he was surprised that he won. Also, I should point out that Jackson didn’t even attend the ceremony last night, so it kind of feels like he knew exactly how this was going to go. We’ve got more on the controversy here.

2. NFL Honors: Jayden Daniels shines

With Snoop Dogg hosting NFL Honors last night, I had no idea what to expect, but I have to say, he was surprisingly entertaining. The funniest/most awkward part of the night was when he made fun of Bill Belichick for dating a 24-year-old (you can check that out here).

The one exciting thing about this year’s ceremony is that there was actually a lot of drama. Not only did we get a surprise with Allen winning MVP, but Kevin O’Connell edged out Dan Campbell for the Coach of the Year award.

Jayden Daniels also had a huge night: Not only did the Commanders rookie win the Offensive Rookie of the Year award, but his Hail Mary against the Bears back in October was named the NFL’s “Moment of the year.”

Here’s a look at all the awards that were handed out Thursday night:

AP Most Valuable Player: Josh Allen (Bills)
AP Coach of the Year: Kevin O’Connell (Vikings)
AP Comeback Player of the Year: Joe Burrow (Bengals)
AP Offensive Player of the Year: Saquon Barkley (Eagles)
AP Defensive Player of the Year: Patrick Surtain II (Broncos)
AP Offensive Rookie of the Year: Jayden Daniels (Commanders)
AP Defensive Rookie of the Year: Jared Verse (Rams)
AP Assistant coach of the Year: Ben Johnson (Lions)
Next Gen Stats Moment of the Year: Jayden Daniels Hail Mary
Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year: Arik Armstead (Jaguars)
Salute to Service Award presented by USAA: George Kittle (49ers)

If you missed the NFL Honors ceremony, you can relive it by clicking here and checking out our takeaways from the event.

3. 2025 Pro Football Hall of Fame class revealed

The Pro Football Hall of Fame changed up its selection process this year, which made it more difficult to get in. Because of that, only four players were voted for induction, which makes it the smallest class since 2005 when four players were also inducted.

Here’s a look at the players who got in:

Eric Allen, CB: Eagles (1988-94), Saints (1995-97), Raiders (1998-2001)
Jared Allen, DE: Chiefs (2004-07), Vikings (2008-13), Bears (2014-15), Panthers (2015)
Antonio Gates, TE: Chargers (2003-18)
Sterling Sharpe, WR: Packers (1988-94)

You can take a closer look at each player’s career by clicking here.

One player who didn’t get in was Eli Manning. He was definitely a divisive candidate: He had two huge Super Bowl wins, but other than that, his career was mostly average. Manning could have joined his brother Peyton to become the first pair of brothers to both make the Hall of Fame, but instead, that honor will go to the Sharpes, with Sterling joining his brother Shannon.

As for Eli, he could be waiting awhile before he gets in. Under the new Hall of Fame bylaws, if you make it to the final seven in the voting for modern-era players, you’ll automatically be a finalist for the following season. However, Manning didn’t make the final seven, but Luke Kuechly, Tory Holt, Willie Anderson and Adam Vinatieri all did, so they’ll be automatic finalists for 2026.

If you want to know who might get voted into the Hall of Fame next year, we took an early look at some of the candidates for the class of 2026 and you can check that out here.

4. Super Bowl LIX picks: We’re split on who’s going to win

I’ve basically spent half my week tracking down everyone’s Super Bowl pick here at CBSSports.com, and although we don’t have every pick in yet — I promise I’ll have all of them by Sunday — I did have several sent to me over the past 48 hours, so I’m going to share them with you now.

With that in mind, let’s get to the Super Bowl picks for a game where the Chiefs are currently favored by 1.5 points. We have six picks below and we are split down the middle.

Pete Prisco: Chiefs 30-27 over Eagles. “When the Chiefs and Eagles take the field Sunday at the Caesars Superdome, the Eagles will do so with a better roster, more top-end players and a physical style that exudes bully ball, but the Eagles don’t have Patrick Mahomes. He is Mr. Clutch, maybe the best ever at getting it done when his team is down or needs him to make a play.” For a full explanation of Prisco’s Super Bowl pick, be sure to click here.
Will Brinson: Chiefs 31-28 over Eagles. “I’m expecting a thrilling, high-scoring game on Sunday night. If the Eagles win, I won’t be shocked at all. But betting against Mahomes to *find a way to win* just hasn’t been a very profitable enterprise over the last half decade.” For a full explanation of Brinson’s Super Bowl pick, be sure to click here.
Tyler Sullivan: Chiefs 28-24 over Eagles. “Kansas City has gone 18 straight playoff games without allowing an individual 100-yard rushing. So, if they can remain sturdy against the run and even limit Saquon Barkley just a bit, they’ll put themselves in a prime position. I also expect Mahomes to build up a lead over Philadelphia, which could further drive Philly out of its comfort zone and into more of a pass-first game script. Kansas City becomes the NFL’s first-ever three-peat Super Bowl champion and Mahomes adds another chapter to his Hall of Fame résumé.” For a full explanation of Sullivan’s Super Bowl pick, be sure to click here.
Cody Benjamin: Eagles 27-26 over Chiefs. “In a weird way, the Eagles losing to the Chiefs in 2022 helped make them who they are today; they’ve been built by fire and battle-tested throughout the playoffs, and now they also have a not-so-secret weapon to keep Steve Spagnuolo honest in Saquon Barkley. It’d only be fitting that he ends this magical run with a ring — on his birthday, no less — and further cements his place in Eagles and NFL history.” For a full explanation of Benjamin’s Super Bowl pick, be sure to click here.
Jordan Dajani: Eagles 30-26 over Chiefs. “Saquon Barkley is the reason why Philly finds itself playing in the Super Bowl, and it’s fair to expect another massive outing for him. Barkley is averaging 147.3 yards rushing per game in the playoffs, and has rushed for five touchdowns. Apart from Barkley being red-hot, Super Bowl Sunday also falls on his 28th birthday. He is going to will the Eagles to victory.” If you want to read Dajani’s full pick, be sure to click here.
John Breech: Eagles 34-24 over Chiefs. “Since Kansas City’s bye in Week 6, I’ve trusted my gut when picking Chiefs’ games and thanks to my gut, I’ve gone 14-0 with those picks. This week my gut is telling me that the Chiefs’ bid for history is going to go down in flames. Of course, that flame sensation could just be all the spicy Cajun food I’ve been eating in New Orleans. I think the Eagles have the better roster, and although the Chiefs have the better quarterback, I think Philly gets a two-score win, so there will be no last second heroics from Patrick Mahomes.” For the rest of my pick, be sure to click here.

For more playoff picks, you can check out our CBS Sports picks page here.

5. Bold predictions for Super Bowl LIX

Garrett Podell has been handing out bold predictions every Friday since September, and now, he’s here to give us one final set of bold predictions for the 2024 season.

Here are three of Garrett’s bold predictions for Super Bowl LIX:

1. Chiefs finally give up a 100-yard rusher. “The Chiefs have never allowed a 100-yard rusher in the postseason under defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo (since 2019), and they have an active streak of 18 games in a row without allowing an individual 100-yard rusher. … Barkley will shake loose running to the outside one more time in the playoffs for one of the best rushing performances in Super Bowl history.”

2. Dallas Goedert has his first playoff game with 100 receiving yards. “The Chiefs have allowed an NFL-worst 8.8 yards per pass attempt on throws targeting tight ends this season. On Sunday, Goedert torches Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton in coverage repeatedly to cross the century mark in receiving yards in the biggest game of his NFL career.”

3. DeAndre Hopkins and Hollywood Brown both score a TD. “The Eagles are the NFL’s No.1 total defense (278.4 total yards per game allowed) and No. 1 pass defense (174.2 passing yards per game allowed), so it would be surprising for Mahomes to be able to just throw the ball with ease on Sunday. Especially to a 32-year-old DeAndre Hopkins and the 2024 version of Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown, who clearly isn’t all the way back after undergoing surgery for a collarbone injury suffered in the preseason. … Mahomes will hit both for touchdowns in throwback moments for each wideout.”

Garrett actually has five bold predictions for Sunday, and if you want to see all five along with his explanation for each prediction, you can check those out here.

6. Extra points: Steelers headed to Ireland

It’s been a busy 24 hours in the NFL, and since it’s nearly impossible to keep track of everything that happened, I went ahead and put together a roundup for you.

Steelers set to play in Dublin. The NFL will be playing its first regular season game ever in Dublin during the 2025 season. The Steelers will be the designated home team, and if you’re wondering who they might play, you can check out our full story here. Dublin joins Madrid and Berlin as cities that will be hosting an NFL regular season game for the first time this year.
Bears owner Virginia McCaskey dies. The NFL’s oldest owner, Virigina McCaskey, passed away on Thursday at the age of 102. McCaskey took ownership of the team in 1983 when her dad, George Halas, died. In the final game that she got to see, the Bears beat their most hated rival, the Green Bay Packers, on a last-second field goal. You can read more about McCaskey’s life in our story here.
Sam Darnold will likely test free agency. The Vikings could make sure Darnold doesn’t leave Minnesota by trying to work out a deal before free agency starts, but it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen. Head coach Kevin O’Connell said on Thursday that Darnold has “earned the right to be a free agent,” which makes it sound like Minnesota is going to let him test the open market. You can read more about his comments here.
Mystery illness has taken over the Super Bowl. One thing to watch on Sunday is whether any players will be sick because a mystery illness seems to have taken over the Super Bowl. Chiefs punter Matt Araiza was a surprise addition to the injury report on Thursday due to an illness. Several Eagles players, including Jalen Carter, are also dealing with a possible illness, which you can read more about here.