Ever since he made his debut with the San Francisco 49ers back in 2019, Nick Bosa has been among the most dominant defensive players in the game.
The former No. 2 pick out of Ohio State earned NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year honors that season, recording 25 quarterback hits, 16 tackles for loss and nine sacks.
After an injury-plagued 2020 campaign that cost him all of two games, Bosa returned to form in 2021. He registered a league-high 21 tackles for loss to go with 15.5 sacks en route to leading San Francisco to the NFC Championship Game.
Now weeks removed from the 49ers’ 2022 season coming to an end, Bosa has earned the top individual award for the defensive side of the ball.
During NFL Honors on Thursday night, the three-time Pro Bowler was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year. He beat out the likes of fellow edge-rusher Micah Parsons of the Dallas Cowboys for the award.
- Nick Bosa stats (2022): 48 QB hits, 19 tackles for loss, 18.5 sacks
In addition to leading the league with 18.5 sacks during the regular season, Bosa recorded an NFL-high 98 overall pressures.