Rodgers vs. Brees: which player took home the NFL MVP trophy?

Aaron Rodgers or Drew Brees, would be the NFL MVP, the question was, as Brees set records on his way to a new yardage passing mark, yet Rodgers seemed so efficient and great all season long.

It wasn't even close, as Aaron Rodgers won last year’s Associated Press NFL Most Valuable Player (MVP) award in a landslide. Rodgers earned 48 votes to two for New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees in votting by a national panel of 50 media members who regularly cover the NFL.

This came about despite the huge surge that Drew Brees made at the end of 2011. Aaron Rodgers finished 2011 with 343 completions out of 502 attempts, for a 68.3 percentage, 4,643 yards, 45 TDs and only 6 interceptions He had a 122.5 QB rating, but he only played in 15 games.

Meanwhile, Drew Brees had 468 completions in 657 attempts, 71.2 percent, 5,476 yards (a new NFL record), 46 TDs and 14 interceptions. He had a 110.6 QB rating for the season, but he played in all 16 games.

Where Rodgers had it over Brees is in TD vs. INT, QB rating, and completion percentage, as well as yards per pass attempt. The glamorous yardage record set by Brees didn't dent Rodgers' in the eyes of voters. The last Green Bay Packer player so honored was Brett Favre, who concluded a run of three consecutive NFL MVP seasons in 1997.

Rodgers recognized the team aspect of the NFL in a statement about the NFL MVP award. “It means a lot to be recognized as a consistent player and contributing on my team. I think it’s an award that relies on a player having the support of his teammates, obviously — guys blocking, guys running, guys catching, guys making plays — but I’m very honored to receive the award.”

Voters recognized the prowess of Brees in another way, however. He was voted the 2011 Associated Press NFL Offensive Player of the Year award.

In another award that was much anticipated, San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh was voted the Coach of the Year award for leading the 49ers back from a dismal 2010 to the playoffs --- in his first season as an NFL head coach. Harbaugh led the 49ers to a 13-3 mark in the regular season and the NFC Championship game. They beat the New Orleans Saints in the divisional round of the NFC playoffs before losing the NFC conference title game to the New York Giants, in overtime.

It was eerily similar to the last 49ers head coach to win the honor. In 1981, the late Bill Walsh won the Coach of the Year award given by the Associated Press. Like Harbaugh three decades later, Walsh took a team that finished 6-10 the previous year to a 13-3 record and the NFC Championship Game. In Walsh's case, however, the 49ers went on to win the Super Bowl.

Harbaugh easily won the honor, besting Green Bay’s Mike McCarthy, who received three votes, and Denver’s John Fox, who received two. The last rookie head coach to win the honor was Atlanta’s Mike Smith, in 2008.

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