Site decorum is off on this one, and I am not remotely pleased with the situation. The Associated Press awarded the Comeback Player of the Year, and Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry won. That is perfectly reasonable, and I don't think anybody can say he does not deserve it.
However, one aspect of the voting goes beyond ludicrous and pisses me off. San Francisco 49ers linebacker NaVorro Bowman got one vote for the award, while Adrian Peterson took home four votes. Here's the full breakdown.
NaVorro Bowman got one vote for comeback player of the year. Eric Berry won w/ 38, Carson Palmer 6, Adrian Peterson 4 (??), Doug Martin 1.
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) February 7, 2016
You are indeed reading that right. Adrian Peterson whipped his kid, and was suspended for the bulk of the 2014 season. He came back and had a great year, but the reason he was "coming back" was because he was suspended. NaVorro Bowman suffered one of the worst kinds of knee injuries imaginable, and came back to lead the NFL in tackles, and earn an All Pro nod.
Honestly, I would have been fine with Eric Berry sweeping the vote. I could have even lived with Berry winning and Palmer getting some votes given his own knee injury. But AP getting votes? Those voters might say they just factor in how he performed after a down year, but shouldn't the details of why it was a down year factor in? They certainly factored in to Eric Berry's victory. It was earned, but if he just misses the final month of the season with a high ankle sprain, he does not win comeback player of the year. So how exactly do you justify any votes for Adrian Peterson with that in mind?
It's garbage.