The NFL will hand out its year-end awards for the '11 season during the "NFL Honors" event, which will air nationally on NBC Feb. 4 from 9:00pm-11:00pm ET. The league and the AP will announce their winners in an awards show format for the first time. Actor Alec Baldwin will host the show from the Murat Theater in Indianapolis. Lenny Kravitz will perform live during the ceremony. A red carpet show will precede the event on NFL Network from 8:00-9:00pm. Among the awards announced will be the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award, the AP MVP and the AP Coach of the Year. Top-tier sponsors of "NFL Honors" include Pepsi, Castrol, Van Heusen and Disney's "The Avengers" and "John Carter." The idea is to make "NFL Honors" an annual event hosted at the site of the Super Bowl (NFL). The AP noted last year the awards were "presented on the NFL Network throughout the week leading up to the Super Bowl" (AP, 1/3). YAHOO SPORTS' Matthew Darnell wrote, "What I find particularly interesting here is that the NFL will be relying on the players to provide an entertaining show, while every other Sunday, they do everything in their power to quell any trace of player personality" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 1/3).
