For Chiefs’ Derrick Thomas MVP award, coaches and teammates picked a versatile O-lineman
The Chiefs’ annual most valuable player award went to an offensive lineman for the first time in nearly three decades.
Joe Thuney, an All-Pro guard who finished the season at left tackle, was this week named the winner of the Derrick Thomas Award. The team’s yearly MVP honor is voted on by KC’s coaches and players.
Thuney ranked second in the NFL among guards in pass-blocking, according to Pro Football Focus. He was also rated as the league’s 46th ranked player by the same organization earlier this week.
When the Chiefs needed a late-season solution at left tackle, Thuney — a guard for most of his NFL career with the Chiefs and, before that, the New England Patriots — kicked out to that position and helped Kansas City capture its fifth AFC championship in six seasons.
The last Chiefs offensive lineman to win the award was Glenn Parker in 1998. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes won the Derrick Thomas Award the previous two seasons.
The winner of this season’s Mack Lee Hill Award, which goes to the Chiefs’ top rookie or first-year player, is wide receiver Xavier Worthy. The first-round draft pick from Texas topped KC’s wideout corps with 59 receptions for 638 yards and nine total touchdowns. He also rushed for 104 yards.
Worthy scored three more touchdowns in the playoffs and turned in his best game yet in the Chiefs’ Super Bowl LIX loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. He caught eight passes on eight targets for 157 yards and two touchdowns.
Last season’s Mack Lee Hill winner also was a wide receiver: Rashee Rice, who missed most of the 2024 season with a torn ACL.
This story was originally published February 21, 2025 at 2:31 PM with the headline "For Chiefs’ Derrick Thomas MVP award, coaches and teammates picked a versatile O-lineman."