The NFL Honors 2016 show can be seen on CBS, Saturday, February 6th at 9pm ET.
Odell Beckham, Jr. is nominated in two categories: Fantasy Player of the Year and Play of the Year. In fantasy leagues, Beckham lived up to his expectations. Odell was the 5th ranked wide receiver and 28th ranked player overall in fantasy football, averaging almost 15 points per game. Beckham beat the average starting wide receiver weekly point total 11 of the 16 weeks. Versus similar drafted wide receivers, Beckham had more points in 9 of the 16 weeks and he exceeded his own projected points seven times. OBJ goes up against Cam Newton, Devonta Freeman, Adrian Peterson, Antonio Brown, Rob Gronkowski, Stephen Gostkowski, and the Denver Broncos defense.
In the Play of the Year category, Odell had a bunch for the league to nominate. OBJ has some tough competition as 32 plays are in the field. However, Beckham is only one of two players with two plays nominated, the other being his buddy from LSU and virtual twin, Jarvis Landry of the Miami Dolphins. Odell’s first nomination is for his one-hand grab in the Week 12 loss to the Washington Redskins:
Beckham’s second nomination comes for his mind-blowing toe-drag catch on the sidelines in the end zone against Miami on Monday Night Football:
Eli Manning is nominated for the Walter Payton Man of the Year. Former Giant Justin Tuck is also up for the award as is potential free agent signee, Eric Berry. The Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award “recognizes an NFL player for his excellence on and off the field… Each team nominates one player who has had a significant positive impact on his community.”
The three finalists will be announced this month. Each of the 32 team nominees receives a $5,000 donation to their charity of choice. The two runner-ups will receive an additional $6,000 donation to their charity of choice. The winner will receive an additional $50,000 donation to his charity of choice.
Eli has served as the Chair of the New York March for Babies for the past seven years, joining thousands of New Yorkers in the walk in support of March of Dimes. His efforts helped to raise over $25 million over that time. Manning also spearheads “Tackle Kids’ Cancer,” an initiative with Hackensack University Medical Center.
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The Giants all-time passing leader and Pro Bowl snub also founded the Eli and Abby Manning Children’s Clinics in 2007 and kicked off a five-year fundraising campaign that ultimately raised close to $3 million. Building on that accomplishment and model, they also created the University of Mississippi Medical Center Manning Family Fund, which received close to $1.5M in its first year last year.
Eli has also done work with the American Red Cross, Guiding Eyes for the Blind, an organization that trains guide dogs; the No More campaign to end domestic violence, Operation Smile’s NYC gala, Make-a-Wish, and Wounded Warrior, in addition to his scholarship endowment at Ole Miss.
Former Giants Head Coach Tom Coughlin is nominated for the Salute to Service Award. In 2007, LT. Col. Greg Gadson, West Point graduate and former Army football player, was injured in a roadside bomb in Baghdad. Cough Coughlin invited Gadson to become one of the 2007 team Co-Captains and Gadson’s motivational speeches were often credited for pulling the team together. Gadson was in Green Bay on the sidelines when the Giants won the NFC Championship and he was on the sidelines when the Giants won Super Bowl XLII.
In 2008, Coughlin visited then Chief of Staff of the Army, General Raymond Odierno in the Middle East and would later go on the annual NFL USO trip. In 2009, Tom went to the Persian Gulf with active members of the U.S. military. This past May, Coughlin was presented with the Outstanding Civilian Service Award at the Twilight Tattoo event at Joint Base Myer – Henderson Hall hosted by General Odierno. The prestigious award is the third-highest honor within the Department of the Army.