The 2019 NFL regular season is officially in the books, and with the end of the season comes the beginning of individual accolades. The NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award is one of the most coveted titles for defensive players and is the highest honor any defensive player has a chance of realistically achieving. According to Vegas Oddsmakers, the current favorites to win the award are Stephon Gilmore, Chandler Jones, Aaron Donald, T.J. Watt, and Nick Bosa. Let’s take a look at each of the frontrunners and see who truly deserves the honor.
Offensive Rookie of the Year Candidates
Defensive Rookie of the Year Candidates
NFL Defensive Player of the Year Candidates
Stephon Gilmore
Entering Week 17, Stephon Gilmore was the odds-on favorite to take home Defensive Player of the Year honors. According to Player Profiler, Gilmore allowed just 41 receptions on 92 targets for 501 yards and one touchdown while picking off six passes and breaking up 14 more. He was the best cornerback in the league on arguably the best defense in the NFL. However, he had a terrible game in Week 17, allowing seven receptions on nine targets for 119 yards against Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Miami Dolphins. It’s only one game, but recency bias could cause Gilmore to lose some of those votes.
Chandler Jones
Chandler Jones has quietly been one of the most effective and dangerous pass-rushers in the league. Through the first 15 games of the season, the former first-round pick had a league-leading 19 sacks and eight forced fumbles. He’s been one of the NFL’s best at getting to the quarterback and is in the midst of arguably the best season of his career. The biggest problem with Jones is that he plays for a bad Cardinals defense in a relatively small market. Winning Defensive Player of the Year has as much to do with narrative as it does actual talent, and the Cardinals are going nowhere fast in 2019. He has as good a case as anyone, but he’s not notably better than Gilmore or anyone else on this list.
Aaron Donald
Aaron Donald is not human. The athletic freak currently has 12.5 sacks, 24 quarterback hits, and two forced fumbles as an interior lineman, and this feels like an underwhelming season. While he might not be quite as good as his absurd 20.5-sack season from 2018, he’s still the best interior defensive lineman in football. He probably should take home the award, but voter fatigue might cost him his third consecutive Defensive Player of the Year title. For better or worse (read: worse), the voters tend to not like to hand out the award to the same guy for an extended period of time.
T.J. Watt
J.J. Watt’s younger brother has transformed into one of the very best young edge defenders in the game. Throughout 15 outings, the former first-round pick has a staggering 14 sacks to go along with 34 quarterback hits, two interceptions, and seven forced fumbles. He’s not quite as good as J.J. Watt at his peak, but he’s not very far behind. Pittsburgh’s defense is one of the best in the league, and Watt is the anchor that makes the defensive line so good.
Nick Bosa
As discussed in our Defensive Rookie of the Year preview, Nick Bosa is having a rookie season to remember. He’s basically guaranteed to win DROY honors and is playing well enough to be in legitimate contention for the DPOY award. However, as great as he is, he’s the clear fifth option on this list. The rookie will probably bring in a few votes, but it’s hard to see him overtaking any of the established veterans in 2019. Assuming he continues to develop, he should be one of the favorites to win the award every year for the next decade
Offensive Rookie of the Year Candidates
Defensive Rookie of the Year Candidates
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