The National Football League Comeback Player of the Year Award refers to a number of awards that are given to a National Football League (NFL) player who overcomes adversity to return to remarkable performance, in the form of not being in the NFL the previous year, a severe injury, or simply poor performance.[1] The awards have been presented by several organizations, including the Associated Press (AP), Pro Football Writers Association (PFWA), Sporting News, and United Press International (UPI). As of the 2024 season, Chad Pennington has been the only recipient of the award to have won the Associated Press NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award in multiple seasons.
See main article: Associated Press NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award.
From 1963 to 1966, the award was given to both an NFL and AFL player. No award was given between 1966 and 1998. In recent years, reigning award recipients Andrew Luck and Alex Smith have retired before the upcoming season.https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/31289953/alex-smith-reigning-nfl-comeback-player-year-announces-retirement-footballhttps://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/26/nfls-andrew-luck-retiring-how-much-money-he-made-could-be-giving-up.html
From 1972 to 1991, the Comeback Player of the Year award was presented by Pro Football Weekly (PFW) only. PFW and the Professional Football Writers of America (PFWA) combined their awards from 1992 to 2012.[2]
| Season | Player | Team | Position | College | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miami Dolphins | Michigan State | ||||
| NC State | |||||
| Alabama | |||||
| Wyoming | |||||
| Quarterback | UMass | ||||
| California | |||||
| Running back | Kansas | ||||
| Miami Dolphins | Syracuse | ||||
| Quarterback | Stanford | ||||
| Augustana | |||||
| Yankton | |||||
| Atlanta Falcons | Widener | ||||
| Alabama A&M | |||||
| Quarterback | Notre Dame | ||||
| Tommy Kramer | Minnesota Vikings | Rice | |||
| 1987 | Charles White | Los Angeles Rams | Running back | USC | |
| 1988 | Greg Bell | Los Angeles Rams | Notre Dame | ||
| 1989 | Ottis Anderson | New York Giants | Miami | ||
| 1990 | Barry Word | Kansas City Chiefs | Virginia | ||
| 1991 | Jim McMahon | Philadelphia Eagles | Quarterback | BYU | |
| UNLV | |||||
| Kansas City Chiefs | Running back | USC | |||
| Miami Dolphins | Quarterback | Pittsburgh | |||
| Michigan | |||||
| Garrison Hearst | Arizona Cardinals | Running back | Georgia | ||
| Pittsburgh Steelers | Notre Dame | ||||
| Wide receiver | South Carolina | ||||
| Quarterback | Boston College | ||||
| San Francisco 49ers | Notre Dame | ||||
| Defensive end | Louisville | ||||
| Garrison Hearst (2) | San Francisco 49ers | Running back | Georgia | ||
| Pittsburgh Steelers | Quarterback | UCLA | |||
| Cincinnati Bengals | Central Washington | ||||
| Buffalo Bills | Running back | Miami | |||
| Wide receiver | Utah | ||||
| New York Jets | Quarterback | Marshall | |||
| Wide receiver | Marshall | ||||
| Chad Pennington (2) | Miami Dolphins | Quarterback | Marshall | ||
| New England Patriots | Michigan | ||||
| Philadelphia Eagles | Virginia Tech | ||||
| Detroit Lions | Georgia | ||||
| Denver Broncos | Tennessee | ||||
| San Diego Chargers | NC State | ||||
| New England Patriots | Arizona | ||||
| Kansas City Chiefs | Safety | Tennessee | |||
| Green Bay Packers | Wide receiver | Kansas State | |||
| California | |||||
| Indianapolis Colts | Quarterback | Stanford | |||
| Tennessee Titans | Texas A&M | ||||
| Washington Football Team | Utah | ||||
| Joe Burrow | LSU | ||||
| Geno Smith | West Virginia | ||||
| Joe Flacco | Cleveland Browns | Quarterback | Delaware | ||
In 1962, United Press International (UPI) chose a comeback player for the first time. The winner, Frank Gifford, had made a comeback from a devastating injury from a hit by Chuck Bednarik. The following year, the Associated Press (AP) established a similar award. UPI discontinued the award after 1963, with the exception of 1969. The AP did not give out the award from 1967 to 1998, when the award was reinstituted and given to Doug Flutie.