Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers has won the 2011 Associated Press NFL Most Valuable Player award in a landslide. Rodgers earned 48 votes to two for New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees in balloting by a nationwide panel of 50 media members who regularly cover the NFL. The Packers star is the first Green Bay player honored since Brett Favre concluded a run of three straight seasons as MVP in 1997.
Curtis Martin has gone from the mean streets of Pittsburgh to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The star running back with the Patriots and Jets for 11 seasons was one of six players elected Saturday to the shrine. Martin once disliked playing the game, but used it to escape a neighborhood where his grandmother was murdered.
San Francisco's Jim Harbaugh has won the 2011 Associated Press NFL Coach of the Year award for leading the 49ers back to the playoffs. In his first season as an NFL coach, Harbaugh guided the 49ers to a 13-3 mark and the NFC West title and the conference championship game. They beat New Orleans in the first round of the playoffs before losing the conference title game to the Giants.
Drew Brees' record-setting season has earned the New Orleans quarterback the 2011 Associated Press NFL Offensive Player of the Year award. Brees shattered Dan Marino's 27-year-old mark by passing for 5,476 yards, and his 468 completions broke Peyton Manning's 2010 record of 450. Brees finished the season completing 71.6 percent of his passes, breaking his own 2009 NFL record (70.6).
Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton has won the 2011 Associated Press NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award. Newton is the second straight No. 1 overall draft pick to take the honor in voting by a nationwide panel of 50 media members who regularly cover the league. Rams QB Sam Bradford won it last year.
Rob Gronkowski walked without a limp as the New England Patriots gathered for photographs on Saturday. Gronkowski, recovering from a high left ankle sprain, and his teammates posed for official team Super Bowl photos and pictures with family members at Lucas Oil Stadium the day before the championship game against the New York Giants.
Wide receiver Tiquan Underwood has been cut by the New England Patriots less than 24 hours before the Super Bowl in a move that increases the likelihood Chad Ochocinco will be active against the New York Giants on Sunday. In another move Saturday, the Patriots signed defensive end Alex Silvestro from their practice squad.
Other than a problem with a team bus, the New York Giants' final walkthrough before the Super Bowl went smoothly Saturday. The second of four buses carrying the team from the hotel to the University of Indianapolis had to be replaced after engine problems. The NFL had a substitute bus on hand and quickly got the players and coaches back en route, with a delay of roughly five minutes.
Some 24 hours before the Super Bowl, a post showed up on the web saying: "The Giants are Super Bowl CHAMPIONS," complete with an image of the Lombardi Trophy and a link to order championship gear. The problem: Kickoff was more than 24 hours away. The NFL said Saturday night that the web page was set up for possible use after Sunday's game between the Giants and Patriots, but was...
Baltimore linebacker Terrell Suggs, the most dynamic player on the Ravens' staunch defense, has won the 2011 Associated Press NFL Defensive Player of the Year award. On a team featuring longtime stars Ray Lewis and Ed Reed, Suggs stood out most for a nationwide panel of 50 media members who regularly cover the league.
