Earl Campbell, Marshall Faulk Lead Way With Three Awards Each

Published on September 16th, 2024 10:06 am EST
Written By: Dave Manuel


The Offensive Player of the Year award was first awarded in 1972 and seeks to reward players that put up tremendous offensive numbers in a single season.

O.J. Simpson, for instance, won the award in 1973 after rushing for over 2,000 yards in a single season. Dan Marino won the award in 1984 after becoming the first player to pass for over 5,000 yards.

If a wide receiver breaks the 2,000 receiving yards mark in a single season, they will surely win the award as well.

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Since 1973, eight different players have won the OPOY award multiple times, and the names might surprise you.

Earl Campbell and Marshall Faulk both won OPOY three years in a row, and they currently remain the only two players to have ever won the award three times.

Jerry Rice, Barry Sanders, Terrell Davis, Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Peyton Manning have all won the award twice.

That's it for multiple time winners of the award, which may surprise some people.

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Here are the multiple time winners of the OPOY award:

Earl Campbell - 3 (1978, 1979, 1980)
Marshall Faulk - 3 (1999, 2000, 2001)
Jerry Rice - 2 (1987, 1993)
Barry Sanders - 2 (1994, 1997)
Terrell Davis - 2 (1996, 1998)
Tom Brady - 2 (2007, 2010)
Drew Brees - 2 (2008, 2011)
Peyton Manning - 2 (2004, 2013)

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The MVP award in the league usually goes to quarterbacks, so the Offensive Player of the Year award is a chance to highlight other offensive talents.

In fact, since the inception of the MVP award, no wide receiver has ever won, including Jerry Rice.

People believe that this was a particularly egregious slight in 1987, when Jerry Rice absolutely dominated in a work stoppage shortened season, putting up 21 touchdowns in just 12 games.

Rice didn't win the MVP award that season, but he did manage to take home the OPOY award instead.