Detroit Lions' Matthew Stafford named Quarterback of the Year by the NFL Alumni
Published: Monday, February 06, 2012, 11:55 PM
By Justin Rogers

Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford may have been snubbed by the Pro Bowl, but he received a more prestigious honor on Friday night, being named the Quarterback of the Year by the NFL Alumni Foundation at their 30th annual Player of the Year Awards. The program aired on the NFL Network on Monday night.

Stafford beat out Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers for the honor.

"Wow, this is an awesome honor -- I appreciate it," Stafford said during his acceptance speech. "Thank you, first off, to the alumni for voting for me. There are a lot of great quarterbacks that could have won this award and definitely deserved it as well. Any time an award like this is given out, it's an individual award, but really, it's won by the team. I couldn't have done it without the teammates and the coaching staff in Detroit. I'm just happy to be part of that team and be part of this."

Stafford shattered many team records as he became just the fourth quarterback in NFL history to throw for more than 5,000 yards. He's also one of only seven players to toss more than 40 touchdowns in a season.

Unlike most seasons, where Stafford's numbers would have made him the clear-cut MVP candidate, he took a backseat to other record-setting quarterbacks this season. New Orleans Saints signal-caller Drew Brees crushed Dan Marino's single-season passing yardage mark, and Rodgers, who won the league MVP, finished with a record 122.5 passing rating.

Stafford was also nominated for Player of the Year, along with Rodgers and Maurice-Jones Drew. The Jacksonville Jaguars running back, who led the NFL in rushing this season with 1,606 yards, ended up taking home the award.

Also nominated for the Lions was Calvin Johnson, but award for Wide Receiver of the Year went to New York Giants wideout Hakeem Nicks.

It was the second season in a row that a Lions player walked away with an award from the event. In 2010, Ndamukong Suh was named the Defensive Lineman of the Year. This year that honor went to Chris Long of the St. Louis Rams.

http://www.mlive.com/lions/index.ssf/20 ... rd_23.html

Receiver of the year to Hakeem Nicks is a joke. Calvin should have gotten that award without any question.

I agree.

I don't see how you could even consider arguing for anyone but Calvin. It may be true that other receivers put up better numbers in one category, but no receiver, in the history of the nfl, has put up across the board numbers as good as Calvin's this season.

Then again, I'm sure folks in Green Bay and New Orleans are wondering why Stafford won QB of the Year.....

Greatest season in history or not, comparing the season Calvin had to the season Hakeem had is like comparing a Formula One car to a Toyota Camry.

Calvin Johnson
96 receptions, 1681 yards, 16 TDs, 10 40+ yard plays, 80.2% of his catches resulted in first downs.

Hakeem Nicks
76 catches, 1192 yards, 7 TDs, 5 40+ yard plays, 71.1% of his catches resulted in first downs.

Calvin ranks first in all those categories, except TDs, where Rob Gronkowski caught 17 for the season. His percentage on catches for first downs is highest among receivers with more than 70 receptions on the season. Only two with 60 or more had more % of their receptions go for first downs.

How is this even a close contest? What were the metrics by which they determined who the winner is?

Then again, I'm sure folks in Green Bay and New Orleans are wondering why Stafford won QB of the Year.....

Nailed it on the head. This NFL Alumni group must've taken too many shots to the head... (too soon for concussion jokes?)