2019 NFL Comeback Player of the Year: Garoppolo wins if he plays up to his paycheck

Workers in every sector experience slumps in their jobs, whether they’re in sales, skilled labor, or professional sports. While most jobs don’t offer an award for bouncing back after a tough year, the National Football League does.

Each season, one player in the NFL is given the AP Comeback Player of the Year. This year, San Francisco 49ers QB Jimmy Garoppolo is favored to take home the trophy at +325 odds via Bovada.

In 2018, Garoppolo tore his ACL during the team’s Week 3 matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs, causing him to miss the rest of the season.

If this preseason is any indication of the rest of the season for Garoppolo, he has a long way to go before being the CBPOY. His first action since the injury, a preseason game against the Broncos, the quarterback was 1-6 with 0 yards and an interception.

Le’Veon Bell, running back for the New York Jets, is another contender for Comeback Player at +450 odds. Bell sat out the entirety of 2018 over contract disputes with the Pittsburgh Steelers but has since signed a four-year $52.5 million contract in the Big Apple.

Bell rushed for 1291 yards in 2017 when he was selected to the Pro Bowl and the All-Pro First-Team, so if he hasn’t lost any of his explosiveness in his time-off, he has a chance to win more than Comeback Player of the Year.

Rounding out the Top 3, Atlanta Falcons RB Devonta Freeman has +900 odds to rebound from injury and be the CBPOY this season. Freeman went down in Week 1 of 2018 with a knee injury before returning in Week 5. However, after groin soreness and its subsequent surgery, the Falcons placed Freeman on injured reserve.

Freeman only put up 865 yards in 2017 and is coming off an injury. Bell, on the other hand, is injury-free and a more productive back historically. If any RB is going to win the award, it’s likely to be Bell.

The full list of Comeback Player possibilities is below with their odds. The award is not reserved for players only on this list, but it is not likely that another player will claim the title with such an extensive list available.