Tag: AFC Defensive Player of the Week

Dolphins LB Bradley Chubb named AFC Defensive Player of the Week

Incredibly the fifth Dolphin to be awarded Player of the Week this season.

The Miami Dolphins earned a shutout win over the New York Jets on Sunday, and they wouldn’t have been able to do so without the incredible performance by linebacker Bradley Chubb.

In the contest, Chubb recorded a team-high seven total tackles (two for a loss) along with three sacks, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.

For his efforts, Chubb was awarded AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors.

This is the first time in Chubb’s career that he’s received this award. However, he’s incredibly been the fifth Dolphin to win it this year, following Tua Tagovailoa, De’Von Achane, Raheem Mostert and Jalen Ramsey.

Miami gambled at last year’s trade deadline when they sent a first-round pick, a fourth-round pick and running back Chase Edmonds for Chubb a fifth-round selection before giving the linebacker a massive extension.

Just over a year later, it looks like the Dolphins made another wise decision.

Josh Allen named AFC Defensive Player of the Week for Week 12

Josh Allen’s destruction of the Texans’ Laremy Tunsil earned him AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors.

Jacksonville Jaguars pass rusher Josh Allen is the AFC Defensive Player of the Week after recording 2.5 sacks against the Houston Texans on Sunday.

Allen, 26, has now earned the honor three times in his career. He first received it in 2021 when he recorded a sack and interception against the Buffalo Bills’ Josh Allen. He got it again last season when he got a sack, forced fumble, and fumble recovery for a touchdown in the de facto AFC South championship game against the Tennessee Titans.

The performance Sunday against the Texans is especially impressive because most of the damage came when Allen was lined up across from three-time Pro Bowl offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil. Eight of Allen’s career-high 12 pressures came against Tunsil, who previously hadn’t allowed a single player to record more than four pressures in the last six seasons.

Allen now has 12 sacks on the year, fifth most in the NFL.

Earlier this season, kicker Brandon McManus received AFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors and Trevor Lawrence was AFC Offensive Player of the Week. McManus also earned AFC Special Teams Player of the Month for October.

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Dolphins CB Jalen Ramsey campaigns for Jevon Holland to win Defensive Player of the Week

The CB wants the Snowman to get some hardware.

With the Miami Dolphins playing their game against the New York Jets on Friday, the players had the weekend off and were able to spend it however they saw fit.

For cornerback Jalen Ramsey, that meant watching the rest of the league. And, in the middle of the Sunday night game between the Baltimore Ravens and Los Angeles Chargers, the cornerback took to social media to make a statement regarding his teammate, safety Jevon Holland.

In Friday’s win, Holland recorded five tackles, a pass defensed and a 99-yard interception return for a touchdown on the final play of the first half.

The pick-6 was much more important than just the result, however, as it came after Tua Tagovailoa had thrown his second interception in as many drives, and the Jets were shifting the momentum before the Hail Mary attempt.

Instead, Holland found the end zone, made it 17-6 and kept New York really ever getting close again.

Ramsey may be right. That type of impact may be deserving of some recognition from the league.

Raiders LB Robert Spillane named AFC Defensive Player of the Week

Robert Spillane named AFC Defensive Player of the Week

By any measure, Robert Spillane had a monster game Sunday night against the Jets. He had made the biggest play of the game when he intercepted Zach Wilson late in the fourth quarter to all but clinch the win for the Raiders. And that was after being the main factor in stalling three previous Jets drives in the game.

For his efforts, the veteran linebacker has been named AFC Defensive Player of the Week.

Just how good was Spillane’s game? Well, he was named my Top Baller and, as I noted, even if you had removed his clutch interception from the equation, he *still* would’ve been Top Baller.

The Raiders defense would keep the Jets out of the end zone in the game and win 16-12.

After taking a 9-3 lead in the second quarter, the Jets were stopped on five straight drives, with Spillane making the key play on the first three of those drives — a run stuff for no gain, a sack, forcing a hold, and then another run stop.

Colts’ Kenny Moore II named AFC Defensive Player of the Week

An obvious choice for the AFC Defensive Player of the Week.

Indianapolis Colts cornerback Kenny Moore II was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week after putting together a historic game in the win over the Carolina Panthers.

Moore was the obvious choice from the Week 9 slate after he returned two interceptions for touchdowns, becoming the first player in Colts history to achieve the feat.

In total, Moore recorded eight tackles (seven solo) and two interceptions. According to Pro Football Focus, he allowed four receptions on six targets for 21 receiving yards and just 12 yards after the catch.

It was the first time in his career that Moore recorded multiple interceptions in a single game, and it was the first time since 2021 that he recorded a pick-six.

Moore now joins kicker Matt Gay (Week 3) as the team’s only players to secure a weekly award from the league.

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Broncos DB Justin Simmons named AFC Defensive Player of the Week

Congrats to Broncos safety Justin Simmons for being named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week!

Denver Broncos safety Justin Simmons has been named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week following his impressive performance against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 8.

Simmons totaled two tackles, one pass breakup, one fumble recovery and one interception in Denver’s 24-9 upset win over Kansas City on Sunday. His fourth-quarter interception helped seal a win that snapped a 16-game losing streak to the Chiefs that dated back to the 2015 season.

Simmons is tied for the NFL lead in interceptions (29) since he entered the league in 2016. He ranks fourth overall among active players.

Simmons has picked off Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes five times in his career, more often than any other player in the NFL (the next-closest defender has two interceptions off Mahomes).

This marks the second time in his career that Simmons has earned a Player of the Week award. He previously won Special Teams Player of the Week honors as a rookie in 2016 after he blocked extra point attempt and helped the Broncos beat the New Orleans Saints in a 25-23 thriller.

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Texans LB Blake Cashman wins AFC Defensive Player of the Week

Houston Texans linebacker Blake Cashman earned AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his work against the New Orleans Saints.

The NFL announced Wednesday Houston Texans linebacker Blake Cashman has been named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week after the team’s 20-13 win over the New Orleans Saints in Week 6.

The award is the first for the 27-year-old and the 52nd instance a Texans player has been named player of the week. The last Texans player to earn such honors was cornerback Tavierre Thomas after Week 16 in 2021.

Cashman delivered a career-high 15 tackles along with two pass breakups, two tackles for loss, and a quarterback hit against the Saints. Cashman joined Vincent Rey (Nov. 10, 2013 at Baltimore), Brian Urlacher (Oct. 16, 2006 at Arizona), and Angelo Crowell (Nov. 13, 2005 at Kansas City) as the only players to generate that exact stat line. Cashman is also the fifth linebacker to post at least 15 tackles and two tackles for loss in a game this season.

The former New York Jets 2019 fifth-round pick is having a noteworthy start to the season as Cashman has produced 31 combined tackles, four tackles for loss, four pass breakups, and an interception through five games, four of which he has started.

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Josh Allen named AFC Defensive Player of the Week

Josh Allen didn’t get a sack, but his impact Saturday didn’t go unnoticed.

Jacksonville Jaguars pass rusher Josh Allen is the AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his season finale performance against the Tennessee Titans, the NFL announced Wednesday.

While Allen didn’t record a sack in the 20-16 win, he did force a fumble from Titans quarterback Josh Dobbs. Allen also scooped up a fumble forced by safety Rayshawn Jenkins and returned it for a go-ahead touchdown with just under three minutes left Saturday.

“He’s really picked it up,” Jaguars coach Doug Pederson said of Allen on Tuesday. “It’s good to see. It’s good to see him play his best football this time of the year. Great players do that, and we’ve just got to keep him coming that way.”

Allen, 25, was a top 10 draft pick in 2019 and finished the regular season with six sacks. Through four seasons in Jacksonville, he has 26.5 sacks and Allen is due to play the 2023 season on the fifth-year option of his rookie deal.

Last season, Allen earned AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors in Week 9 when he finished with a sack, interception, and a fumble recovery against the Josh Allen-led Buffalo Bills.

Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence earned AFC Offensive Player of the Week honors twice this season, safety Rayshawn Jenkins was Defensive Player of the Week once, and kicker Riley Patterson was Special Teams Player of the Week once.

Rayshawn Jenkins named AFC Defensive Player of the Week

It was an easy choice for AFC Defensive Player of the Week.

Jacksonville Jaguars safety Rayshawn Jenkins is the AFC Defensive Player of the Week after a career day against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 15.

Jenkins, 28, was a pretty easy choice for the NFL after he became the first player ever to record at least 18 tackles and two interceptions in a game. His second pick Sunday was returned 52 yards for a game-winning overtime touchdown.

Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence has earned AFC Offensive Player of the Week honors twice this season, but Jenkins is the first player on the team to win on the other side of the ball. Last year, Josh Allen was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week after recording a sack, interception, and a fumble recovery against the Buffalo Bills.

Jenkins began his career with the Los Angeles Chargers and joined the Jaguars in 2021 as a free agent. After Sunday, he has three interceptions on the season with 11 pass deflections and 95 total tackles.

Chiefs CB Jaylen Watson ‘very humbled’ by AFC Defensive Player of the Week win

#Chiefs rookie CB Jaylen Watson was humbled by his AFC Defensive Player of the Week win, but he’s already turned his focus to the #Colts. | from @EdEastonJr

The Kansas City Chiefs made a concerted effort to add more depth in the secondary during April’s NFL draft.

One of their multiple defensive selections was cornerback Jaylen Watson taken in the seventh round of Washington State. The 24-year-old made the most of his opportunity to get on the field early, replacing fellow rookie Trent McDuffie in the lineup due to injury.

In Week 2 against the Chargers, Wayson made his first career start. He played solid defense throughout the game and sealed the victory with a 99-yard interception return for a touchdown. The effort earned him AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors, but the success isn’t going to his head, as he explained to reporters in the locker room ahead of Wednesday’s practice.

“I’m very humbled,” said Watson. “It’s a great feeling, but (I) got the ‘24 hour’ rule. Celebrate it, (I’m) glad that it was on a Thursday, so I could celebrate a little longer than 24 hours, but I’m on to the next one.”

Watson finished with four total tackles to accompany his interception in Week 2, he also allowed just three receptions into his coverage on five targets. Watson is proud of the performance but further discussed the things he needs to do to improve upon this season.

“I think I did pretty well in coverage (but) I want to finish better – getting the ball out,” said Watson. “(The) speed is different being in open field (and) trying to tackle ballcarriers. So, just tackling in open space, which is so hard to do at this level (and) just see things faster, keep watching film, (and) get a better chemistry with the guys I’m running with now.”

The rookie has battled his way up the depth chart this offseason and preseason. He proved to millions last Thursday that he belongs in the lineup and can make a serious impact with his play. 

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