NFL Offensive Player of the Year Predictions & Odds 2025: Saquon Barkley Early Favorite to Repeat

• Saquon Barkley is the clear favorite to win Offensive Player of the Year honors ahead of the 2025 preseason, becoming the first player to repeat since Marshall Faulk in 2001.

• Ja’Marr Chase has the second-shortest odds to be OPOTY after winning the wide receiver Triple Crown in 2024.

• Running backs Jahmyr Gibbs, Derrick Henry, and Bijan Robinson are all among the leading favorites ahead of the season.

Offensive Player of the Year is one of the most unique awards in the NFL. In theory, it should go to a quarterback virtually every year, much like the NFL MVP award does. However, more often than not, Offensive Player of the Year goes to the best non-quarterback offensive player. This often leads to a hotly contested battle between the NFL’s top wide receivers and running backs to be named Offensive Player of the Year. That makes the award difficult to handicap, requiring a close examination of who the favorites and best candidates are to win the award.

AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year Odds

Odds from FanDuel Sportsbook. Place your bets at FanDuel today and claim the welcome offer: Bet $5, Get $300 in Bonus Bets if Your Bet Wins.

AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year Predictions

It should be no surprise that Saquon Barkley is the betting favorite for Offensive Player of the Year at the start of the preseason. Even if Jalen Hurts won Super Bowl MVP honors, Barkley is the biggest reason why the Eagles are reigning Super Bowl champs. While Barkley is a little old for an elite running back at age 28, it’s hard to imagine a sudden drop-off in his productivity. Even if Barkley doesn’t match the 2,200 all-purpose yards or 15 total touchdowns he had in 2024, as long as he stays healthy, he’s likely to put up the kind of numbers that will make him a serious candidate for Offensive Player of the Year. 

On the other hand, no player has won OPOTY in back-to-back seasons since Marshall Faulk won it in three straight years from 1999 to 2001. Therefore, the odds are against Barkley winning the award again. That opens the door for wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson. Chase won the wide receiver Triple Crown in 2024, which would have been enough to win OPOTY most seasons. Of course, replicating those numbers will be difficult. Jefferson is equally capable of having that type of season, although he will have to adjust to a new quarterback for the second straight season. That could allow one of the NFL’s younger running backs to take the reins as the league’s top offensive playmaker. Jahmyr Gibbs of the Lions and Bijan Robinson of the Falcons are the top contenders ahead of the season, while veteran Derrick Henry is still lurking in the background.

Bet $5 at FanDuel, Get $150 in Bonus Bets if Your Bet Wins

AP Offensive Player of the Year Winner - My Pick

• Jahmyr Gibbs (+1300) at FanDuel Sportsbook

Heading into his third NFL season, Gibbs is only 23, so he should be entering the prime of his career as a running back. He’s fresh off a season in which he scored 20 total touchdowns, including a league-high 16 rushing touchdowns. While Gibbs does have to share playing time with David Montgomery, he’s clearly Detroit’s featured back and plays in one of the NFL’s most dynamic offenses, allowing Gibbs to surpass his numbers from 2024 and win Offensive Player of the Year.

Get $150 in Bonus Bets at FanDuel With a $5 Winning Wager

How to Bet on AP Offensive Player of the Year

Until the late stages of the season, it’s usually tough to decipher who will win Offensive Player of the Year. Even late in the season, there are often going to be several deserving candidates. Most of the time, unless there is a quarterback who has gone above and beyond, it’s a safe bet that either a wide receiver or running back will win the award. Of course, that doesn’t always narrow down the list of serious candidates much.

While it sounds simple, Offensive Player of the Year often comes down to pure numbers. More often than not, the winner is either the NFL leader in rushing or receiving yards. Typically, it helps if that player is far ahead of the pack in that category. While scoring touchdowns and playing for a winning team can matter, total yards is usually the best indicator of who will win Offensive Player of the Year. The catch is predicting which running back or wide receiver has the supporting cast around him and the opportunity to blow away the competition when it comes to statistics. If you can spot that player, you can predict who will be the Offensive Player of the Year.

How to Read AP Offensive Player of the Year Odds

With no shortage of candidates, most contenders for Offensive Player of the Year will have plus (+) odds listed next to their name. This means the potential to make a big profit with an accurate bet. For example, a player with +800 will give you a profit of $800 if you bet $100. Just keep in mind that odds for the top favorites tend to shrink later in the season. If there is a heavy favorite, they may have negative (-) odds, which will reduce the potential profit. For example, for a player with -400 odds, you will have to bet $400 to make a profit of $100.

Where to Bet on AP Offensive Player of the Year

Most reputable online sportsbooks will keep close tabs on Offensive Player of the Year odds throughout the season, as well as during the offseason. FanDuel Sportsbook is among the best options for betting on OPOTY and other NFL awards. For starters, FanDuel is one of the NFL’s official betting partners. It also has a lot of NFL betting markets with competitive odds.

FanDuel is also a great sportsbook for first-time users. New customers who sign up for a FanDuel account are eligible for a lucrative welcome offer: Bet $5, Get $300 in Bonus Bets if Your Bet Wins. There is no promo code necessary; just sign up, bet $5, and collect your bonus bets if your first wager wins.

AP Offensive Player of the Year History

The first AP Offensive Player of the Year honor was awarded in 1972 to running back Larry Brown of the team now known as the Washington Commanders. The only positions to win the Offensive Player of the Year award are quarterbacks, running backs, and tight ends.