The next month will be award season in the NFL — culminating with NFL Honors the Thursday of Super Bowl week — and inevitably will come multiple hat-tips to Cardinals tight end Trey McBride.
The first possibility came on Friday when McBride was the tight end that was nominated for the FedEx Ground and Air Player of the Year award.
In a shift from previous years, nine total QBs, running backs and wide receivers/tight ends will complete. The top vote getter for each category will also receive a trophy. Fans can vote for their top three choices through Feb. 4 both at nfl.com/fedex and an X (formerly Twitter) poll on the @NFL official handle.
Bills QB Josh Allen
Patriots QB Drake Maye
Rams QB Matthew Stafford
49ers RB Christian McCaffery
Falcons RB Bijan Robinson
Colts RB Jonathan Taylor
Rams WR Puka Nacua
Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba
McBride, of course, had a monster season, setting an NFL record for catches by a tight end with 126 (finishing second in the entire NFL in receptions) to go along with his 1,239 yards and 11 touchdowns. All three were his career-bests, and the 126 catches was also a franchise record for the Cardinals.