Trent McDuffie has quickly established himself as one of the best playmaking cornerbacks in the NFL. In just his third season, the former first-round pick and Washington Huskies star has already won two Super Bowls and was named to the All-Pro First Team in 2023.
In 2024, he’s determined to secure his third championship and second All-Pro nomination. McDuffie has already tallied a career-high 12 pass breakups, but until a few weeks ago, had struggled to force any turnovers after forcing 6 fumbles in 2023, mainly because teams have refused to throw the ball in his direction.
Against the Cleveland Browns on December 15, he hauled in his first career interception and followed that up with his second just six days later. Now, playing on Christmas Day against the Pittsburgh Steelers, he forced his first fumble of the year.
Less than a minute into the fourth quarter, the Steelers were facing a third and 15, and quarterback Russell Wilson chose to dump the ball off to tight end Pat Freiermuth. Even though Friermuth is seven inches taller and more than 60 pounds heavier than the cornerback, McDuffie showed no fear and went straight at him.
He was able to rip the ball away before it was recovered by linebacker Nick Bolton, which set up a 12-yard touchdown pass from Patrick Mahomes to Travis Kelce, sealing a 29-10 win for the Chiefs, and the No. 1 seed in the AFC.
McDuffie finished his day with 4 tackles and a pass breakup to go with the forced fumble.