Wyman & Bob’s 2021 Seahawks Awards: MVPs, best newcomer

The 2021 season didn’t go as planned for the Seattle Seahawks, who finished the year with a 7-10 record and a last-place finish in the NFC West. That doesn’t mean there weren’t bright spots, however.

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After seeing John Boyle of Seahawks.com give out his awards for this past season, Dave Wyman and Bob Stelton of 710 ESPN Seattle’s Wyman and Bob decided to hand out their own awards for 2021.

Here are who those two chose as their offensive and defensive MVPs as well as best newcomer during Tuesday’s show.

Offensive MVP: WR Tyler Lockett

Like Boyle, both Wyman and Stelton went with wide receiver Tyler Lockett, who was the Seahawks’ most reliable and consistent performer on offense in 2021.

Lockett finished the year with 73 receptions for 1,175 yards and eight touchdowns. The 1,175 yards are a career high for the seventh-year receiver, and he became just the second Seahawk ever to have 1,000 or more receiving yards three seasons in a row. The other? Hall of Famer Steve Largent.

RUSSELL WILSON WITH THE 🌙 BALL TO TYLER LOCKETTpic.twitter.com/YxaHNZSfnF

— PFF (@PFF) December 12, 2021

While Lockett had another great season, part of why he was chosen for the award was due to injuries and lackluster performances from other players on offense.

“You have to think about it, in my opinion, a little bit more (than usual),” Wyman said. “… Maybe it’s something about the way the guy that I think is the MVP plays, he’s very understated. I think (it’s) Tyler Lockett, but it doesn’t jump out to you, does it? … Typically we’re talking about (Russell Wilson) at this point or possibly Chris Carson, but that didn’t work out.”

Wilson missed three games due to a finger injury and had his share of struggles upon his return, while Carson played in just four games before a neck injury ended his season.

“It always feels like an obvious choice with Russ, but this wasn’t his year.  He missed time and he wasn’t the same when he came back,” Stelton said. “… But there wasn’t a standout. It was a rough year for the offense in totality. You had moments, obviously against the Lions and games like that where they look phenomenal. But as a whole, yeah, really off year for the offense. So it’s not an obvious answer, especially with Russ being hurt and then coming back less than (100%).”

Defensive MVP: FS Quandre Diggs

Once again, Wyman and Stelton agreed with Boyle, this time choosing free safety Quandre Diggs as the MVP of the Seahawks on defense.

Diggs finished up his third season in Seattle with had five interceptions and seven pass defenses to earn his second Pro Bowl nod in a row.

Matthew Stafford hitting a WIDE open Quandre Diggs 🎯pic.twitter.com/Jt6QEKqESl

— PFF (@PFF) December 22, 2021

“You look at just what a leader he was out on the field and then getting the takeaways,” Wyman said. “I mean, the interceptions were huge, and he got five of them. And he just was always there.”

In order to show just how good Diggs was, Wyman pointed to a rare miscue where Diggs missed an open-field tackle against the Lions, saying it was “shocking” when it happened because Diggs played so well in 2021.

“He’s just very valuable,” Wyman said. “Also I just like his personality. I like that he’s kind of angry and I like that he holds everybody to a higher standard.”

Best Newcomer: TE Gerald Everett

Though Wyman and Stelton went with an offensive player for the Best Newcomer category like Boyle, they went with tight end Gerald Everett over right guard Gabe Jackson.

“I’m going with Gerald Everett. I think Gabe Jackson was a bit uneven,” Stelton said. ” … The O-line I didn’t think was great this year at all. Everett I thought was really good. He had one horrific game (against the 49ers) and then he had another drop in another situation, but for the most part, you look at him he had the third-most catches, third most targets (on the team).”

Everett caught 48 passes for 478 yards and four touchdowns, all of which were career highs for Everett, who came to Seattle as a free agent last offseason from the Los Angeles Rams.

Stelton also loved how physical Everett was.

“The one thing that stuck out to you, and I think anybody that watched him, was he ran angry,” he said. “There was some ferocity to the way he ran the ball after he caught it, and I love that.”

Gerald Everett channeling BeastMode. #Seahawks

📺: #SEAvsPIT on NBC
📱: NFL app pic.twitter.com/x9JT1Nc1a6

— NFL (@NFL) October 18, 2021

Wyman also likes that Everett exceeded his expectations.

“I really didn’t expect that much out of him. When I saw the signing, I was kind of lukewarm on it,” he said. “… I watched him in L.A., obviously, and I think (Rams tight end) Tyler Higbee had better numbers, but (the Seahawks) saw something in him. So that one was a surprise to me.”

Wyman said it’s unfortunate that Everett’s tough game against the 49ers, in which he lost two fumbles and dropped a touchdown that San Francisco intercepted, will be the first thought many have of his 2021 season. He also said it was too bad Everett missed two games due to COVID-19.

“His numbers probably would have been better,” Wyman said. “… I felt like the way he was and the way Quandre Diggs was, we needed more of that. We needed more anger, more violence, and that’s how those guys play, and that’s how the game is meant to be played. And for that reason, those two guys both stood out.”

You can find a podcast of the full conversation at this link when it is made available at 7 p.m. after Tuesday’s show.

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