Adam Cole: When Denver traveled to San Diego in the last game of the season, they got crushed by the small statured Darren Sproles. They became the first team in NFL history to lead their division from the first game until the final game of the season—and then not make the playoffs.

Behnam Nowrouzi-Kia: Without a doubt it was the Super Bowl. Usually the game is a giant letdown, but this year it lived up to the hype.

Dan Rios: The greatest moment of the season came early on. This year’s Shot Heard Round the World had huge implications for the AFC East conference when Tom Brady’s knee exploded in Week One after a vicious hit by Bernard Pollard. This allowed the Bills and Jets to have a legitimate shot at the division title for once, while reducing the Patriots’ chances of making the post-season with untested backup Matt Cassel (although, surprisingly, the Pats didn’t suck). With the regular season ending in a three-way dog fight between the Jets (led by a revitalized Brett Favre), Pats, and Dolphins, all eyes were on the AFC East. The Bills, predictably enough, choked after a blistering 5-1 start. Who knew Tom Brady’s knees were so important?

Gaurav S. Thapa: What was better than Steelers linebacker James Harrison’s 100-yard interception return with zero seconds left in the half? Simply amazing.

Andrea Yeomans: Mike Singletary’s first post-game press conference as head coach of the San Francisco 49ers was one of the best press conferences ever. He said what every head coach in the NFL should be saying: that he isn’t interested in working with players that do not work well with others. “It is more about them than it is about the team,” said Singletary. “Cannot play with them, cannot win with them, cannot coach with them. Can’t do it. I want winners. I want people that want to win.” Somebody should pass this message along to Terrell Owens.

Best story of the season

DR: The Cardinals’ unlikely ascent is the greatest story of the year. Years of impotence and frustration were washed away with a Super Bowl XLIII appearance. Kurt Warner’s incredible season and the unveiling of future superstars Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald provides hope for a repeat performance next year.

The second greatest story was the performance of two rookie quarterbacks. Joe Flacco had a great year with a Ravens team that was not expected to compete. Flacco’s fearless play—throwing blocks with little regard for his own safety—and his strong arm have him poised to become a franchise quarterback. Matt Ryan of the Falcons capped a great season with a playoff berth, and a close loss to the eventual NFC champion Arizona Cardinals. The Falcons under coach Mike Smith show no lasting effects from the Michael Vick scandal. They are once again a contender.

GST: The Miami Dolphins making it to the playoffs after a 1-15 season a year ago. The Detroit Lions can certainly learn from this example.

Worst story of the season

Brian O’Neill: Brett Favre. He has a spot already reserved in the Football Hall of Fame, but the constant Favre barrage was deafening, especially when considering that the Jets didn’t make the playoffs. For all the hype, Favre has only one Super Bowl ring. Hopefully Favre will retire for good this time.

DR: The Detroit Lions defined futility with the wrong kind of perfect season. The Lions became the first team to go 0-16, punctuating years of failure and paper bags. It is a long road ahead to redemption, now the Detroit Lions must start walking it.

The Bills match-up in Toronto against the Dolphins may have been the worst game of the season. This game was a real snoozer: after having been hyped ad nauseum, fans had to sit through J.P. Losman’s dreadful play and an uninspired Dolphins offense. The low point was when the Bills tried their own variation of the “wildcat” formation with little success. Exorbitant ticket prices, a guy showing off his O.J. Simpson jersey on the Jumbotron, and zero touchdowns left a bad taste in fans’ mouths. And where did all those Dolphins fans come from?

Biggest Surprise

BN-K: Arizona’s Super Bowl run was the most surprising. They barely made the playoffs, yet managed to beat three very good NFC teams, falling just short of winning the Super Bowl.

BO: The fact that Norv Turner escaped the 2008 season with his job intact was shocking, as his Chargers managed to beat the Colts in the playoffs, after finishing with an uninspiring record of 8-8. The year before Turner took over as head coach, the Chargers finished 14-2. Under Turner, they have steadily gotten worse. There is no doubt Turner is counting his blessings that the Chargers play in the terribly weak AFC West.

DR: The biggest surprise of the season has to be Miami’s dramatic turnaround. After going 1-15 last year, the Dolphins winning the tough AFC East division was a surprising development in a topsy-turvy season. A combination of Chad Pennington’s precise passing and the defence-confusing “wildcat” formation led the ‘Fins into the playoffs for the first time in seven years. It all came down to the last game of the season, in which Pennington beat his former team and managed to knock the Patriots out of a playoff berth for the first time since 2002.

GST: Larry Fitzgerald.

AY: The Broncos firing Mike Shanahan. He is a great coach and didn’t deserve to be let go. It’s disappointing that a coach that guides his team to 138-86 record over fourteen years falls one win shy of making the playoffs and gets fired.

Did Peyton Manning deserve the MVP Award?

DR: Manning’s nine straight victories was a masterful performance. After a slow start—due in large part to Peyton’s lingering knee problem—Manning essentially willed his team to the playoffs with his exceptional play. However, the Colts are always perennial favourites, so making the playoffs is nothing special. The award should go to either Kurt Warner for his leadership, or Chad Pennington for his clutch play, as neither team was expected to make the playoffs.

GST: At the end of the day, it’s all about making the playoffs. I would give the award to Steelers linebacker James Harrison, but it seems that the MVP has to go to an offensive player. Peyton Manning was the greatest quarterback during the regular season.

AY: No, Peyton Manning shouldn’t have been the MVP. Though the Colts mounted a huge comeback after a shaky start, Manning was not the sole reason. Indianapolis is a great team because they have a lot of excellent players—Reggie Wayne, Marvin Harrison, Joseph Addai, Bob Sanders—all as valuable as Manning. A more worthy MVP would have been Kurt Warner. He’s the reason the Cardinals made it to Super Bowl XLIII. Arizona would have floundered had Matt Leinart been at the helm, regardless of the play of Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin.

Next year, the Pro Bowl will be moved from Honolulu to the Super Bowl host city, and played one week before the Big GAME. Is this a good decision?

BN-K: I am a fan of making the Pro Bowl more relevant. However, this decision will force the Super Bowl teams to withdraw their players from playing in the Pro Bowl.

BO: This change is pointless. Nobody cares about the Pro Bowl, and moving it a week before the Super Bowl will not change that. Media Week is much more enjoyable, and fans care more about the hype leading up to the Super Bowl than some pick-up game, with no incentive. If the NFL really wants to make a change, they should drop the Pro Bowl altogether.

DR: Moving the Pro Bowl to before the Super Bowl is a good decision. Although the Super Bowl teams will probably rest their players, this change should increase the number of people watching the game, and build excitement for the championship. However, it’s a shame that the result of this all-star contest is meaningless. If there were some kind of incentive for a conference to win the game, it might make for more compelling football.

GST: I’ve never seen the Pro Bowl, and likely never will. In a contact sport like football, it’s pointless to have a game without aggressive tackling. This decision will probably garner higher TV ratings, because nobody watches the NFL after the Super Bowl is over.

AY: Moving the Pro Bowl from Honolulu is a good decision. There are a lot of fans that would love to see the Pro Bowl but cannot afford to make the trip to Hawaii. Holding the game before the Super Bowl is a bad decision. This puts the Pro Bowl in the shadow of the biggest game of the season, defeating the purpose. Being selected for the Pro Bowl is important for many players. It doesn’t seem fair to make these players share the spotlight with the Super Bowl. When the Pro Bowl is held after the Super Bowl, all the players are back on level playing field: the season has ended, records are back to zero, and everyone can relax, playing a relatively carefree game of football.

Hopes for next season

GST: A season similar to this one would be awesome. There were lots of upsets and hopefully, this time around, the underdog can win the Super Bowl in overtime.

AY: My biggest hope for next season is that Andy Reid returns as Eagles head coach and finally gets that elusive “third challenge.”

—COMPILED BY SARA QUINN