Pat Surtain II sees a defensive player of the year amid his Broncos running mates.
He’s in good position to weigh in on such matters, considering he’s the reigning title holder.
Surtain on Thursday said he believes outside linebacker Nik Bonitto is “on his way” to winning the award this year — or at least being firmly in contention.
“I’m pretty sure he’s aiming for that,” Surtain said Thursday. “Why not go get that accolade? I know it’s a big opportunity for him to get that, for sure. He’s on his way to securing that award. I know he’s going to look forward to getting better each and every week, but I think I can say for sure that he’s thinking about getting that award.”
The numbers so far back it up. Bonitto leads the NFL in pressures (27) and quick pressures — defined by Next Gen Stats as pressure generated in less than 2.5 seconds. He’s got 4.5 sacks, a half-sack off the league lead.
According to NGS, Bonitto’s 31.4% pressure rate is the highest recorded by an NFL player with at least 50 pass rushes since the outfit started tracking pressure data in 2018.
“Obviously, he’s quite the athlete,” Surtain said. “He’s got, what, like the top get-off or something like that? We lead the league in pressures and sacks, and a lot of credit goes toward him for that.”
Bonitto and Surtain looked to be in a race for the award last year before Bonitto’s production lagged a bit down the stretch. Surtain was just the second defensive back to win NFL Defensive Player of the Year since 2010 (Stephon Gilmore in 2019), and the next three players behind him in voting were all edge rushers.
Surtain was also the first Broncos player to win DPOY since Randy Gradishar in 1976.
Recent NFL history has seen two players win the award back-to-back years (Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald and Houston defensive end J.J. Watt), but the last teammates to win the award in consecutive years were Baltimore’s Ed Reed (2004) and Ray Lewis (2003).
Other teammates who have won DPOY in consecutive years: Buffalo’s Bryce Paup and Bruce Smith (1995-96) and Pittsburgh’s Joe Greene, Mel Blount and Jack Lambert (1974-76).
