NFL Offensive Player of the Year Odds: Does Cooper Kupp or Jonathan Taylor Have the Edge?
NFL Offensive Player of the Year Odds: Does Cooper Kupp or Jonathan Taylor Have the Edge?
In 2021, it's all about offense, and man have we seen some pretty insane performances throughout the year on this side of the ball. It started out as the year of Derrick Henry, before the injury, Joe Burrow has come on strong over the past two weeks but the show that Cooper Kupp and Jonathan Taylor have put on is next to none.
Heading into the final week of the year, both Kupp and Taylor are tied with the best NFL odds at -105 to take home the award. We'll make the case for both and predict who comes out on top.
Cooper Kupp (-105)
Through 16 games, Kupp is leading the league in receptions, yards, touchdowns, and yards per game at 138 catches for 1,829 yards and 15 touchdowns. It's been one of the most impressive seasons from the wide receiver position that we've seen in a long time. If the season ended today, Kupp would be fifth all-time in receiving yards on a year and he trails Calvin Johnson's 2012 record by 135 yards. So there's a chance, albeit a small one, that he is the all-time leader in receiving yards on a season.
Normally, that would be more than enough to take home an award but with Jonathan Taylor's season how could you not include him in this conversation?
Jonathan Taylor (-105)
In his sophomore season, Jonathan Taylor has been stellar for the Indianapolis Colts. He leads the league in rushes, yards, and touchdowns with 317 for 1,734 yards and 16 touchdowns. If you want to add in receiving touchdowns he's at 20 and over 2,000 yards from scrimmage as well.
The touchdown streak alone is enough for him to be in the conversation here. So let's take at matchups next and who has the edge going into the final week.
Cooper Kupp vs Jonathan Taylor
The Rams are going up against San Francisco this week who have fared pretty well against the pass this year. They're allowing the fifth-fewest passing yards against and the seventh-fewest pass touchdowns against on the year. For context, the last time these two teams played Kupp had 122 yards on 11 catches but was held out of the endzone.
As for Taylor, his team is going up against the Jacksonville Jaguars who are one of the league's worst run defenses. They rank 25th in rush yards allowed and 30th in rush touchdowns allowed on the year. The last time these two teams played, Taylor went for 116 and a score.
Really it comes down to who you think will have the better week in the final week of the season. My guess is Jonathan Taylor has one more show in him while the Rams may struggle against that pass defense of the 49ers.