Article: Eddie George carries MVP load for Titans.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)

The official awards won't start rolling in until next week, but there's no time like Christmas Eve to hand out a few presents to deserving NFL coaches and players.

Coach of the Year: There's a long list of worthy candidates, including the Raiders' Jon Gruden, the Eagles' Andy Reid and the Giants' Jim Fassel.

But the award goes to Saints coach Jim Haslett. No coach overcame longer odds to reach the playoffs.

In his rookie season, Haslett took over a demoralized team that had finished last in the NFC West at 3-13 in the final year of Mike Ditka's ill-fated run.

Haslett led the Saints (10-5) to their first division championship since ...

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