The NFL gave out its end-of-season awards at the NFL Honors on Thursday night. San Francisco 49ers edge rusher Nick Bosa was named Defensive Player of the Year with 46 votes. The only member of the Pittsburgh Steelers to end up anyone on the voting was safety Minkah Fitzpatrick who got a single vote.
Fitzpatrick had a huge bounceback 2022 season. After spending 2021 as a run-stopper, Fitzpatrick returned to form as a ballhawk in the secondary. In 15 games, Fitzpatrick racked up 96 total tackles and 11 passes defended. This was in addition to leading the league with six interceptions.
Should Fitzpatrick have been given more consideration in the DPOY voting? Absolutely. His numbers were elite and he carried the Steelers secondary all season long. And he did what he did while missing two games and playing without T.J. Watt for a half dozen more. But I’ll leave the question to you. On this list of players who received votes, where would you rank Fitzpatrick? Let us know in the comments.
AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year voting breakdown:
5 points for 1st; 3 points for 2nd; 1 point for 3rd.
First-place votes:
1. Nick Bosa – 46
2. Micah Parsons – 0
3. Chris Jones – 1
4. Haason Reddick – 2
7. Quinnen Williams – 1 pic.twitter.com/fM8Z6JqJyV— Rob Maaddi (@RobMaaddi) February 10, 2023
