In 1972, National Football League (NFL) defensive tackle Alan Page made history as the first-ever winner of the Associated Press (AP) Defensive Player of the Year award and the first defensive player to win NFL MVP. Only one other defensive player, Lawrence Taylor in 1986, has since won both awards in the same year. Page, who played for the Minnesota Vikings, finished the 1971 season with 109 tackles, nine quarterback sacks, three fumble recoveries, and two safeties.
Below are the four most recent winners of the AP Defensive Player of the Year award.
1. Nick Bosa
San Francisco 49ers EDGE rusher Nick Bosa won the 2022 AP Defensive Player of the Year award with 46 of the 50 first-place votes for 237 total vote points. Micah Parsons of the Dallas Cowboys was the runner-up with 101 vote points. Bosa, who also finished sixth in MVP voting, recorded a season-leading and career-best 18.5 sacks in the 2022 season. He also had 51 tackles and two forced fumbles.
This wasn't the first time the AP recognized Bosa for his on-field achievements. Selected second overall by the 49ers in the 2019 NFL Draft, Bosa won the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2019 after finishing his first season with 47 tackles, nine sacks, two fumble recoveries, one forced fumble, and one interception. He signed a five-year, $170 million contract extension with the 49ers ahead of the 2023 season, making him the highest-paid defensive player in league history.
2. TJ Watt
TJ Watt, brother of three-time AP Defensive Player of the Year winner JJ Watt, won the award for the first time in 2021. A five-time Pro Bowl outside linebacker, TJ finished the season with a season-leading and career-best 22.5 sacks and 21 tackles for a loss of yards. He also had five forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries. Watt received 42 of the 50 first-place votes.
3. Aaron Donald
Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald won his third AP Defensive Player of the Year award in 2020, beating out runner-up TJ Watt by seven first-place votes. Donald, who also won the award in 2018 and 2017, recorded 45 tackles, 13.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery in 2020. An alumnus of the University of Pittsburgh, he won AP Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2014 and was selected to the Pro Bowl in each of his first nine seasons.
4. Stephon Gilmore
One of only two cornerbacks or safeties to win AP Defensive Player of the Year since 2010, Stephon Gilmore of the New England Patriots received 21 of 50 first-place votes in 2019. He finished that season with 53 tackles and a league-best six interceptions and 20 defended passes.