The 2015 MMQB awards: Tiered panel picks NFL's best

Clockwise, from top left: Todd Gurley, Cam Newton, Marcus Peters and Ron Rivera.Have I ever told you how much I love The MMQB’sannual NFL awards? I love them, in large part, because of how different they are from the traditional Associated Pressawards, which are one-vote-per-category, all-or-nothing awards. I prefer a vote of 1 through 5, so there can be a list of deserving people in each category. (More about this later.)

And I love how enthusiastic the voters are. I asked our 24 panelists to email me their ballots by late Monday, the day after the season, giving us time to tabulate and write about them so you can see the results soon after the season ends. At 3:15 a.m. Eastern, I was…