Nick Bosa is now the odds on favorite to win the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year, but should he be in consideration for an even higher honor?
A number of folks — including former 49er Donte Whitner — have said as much on KNBR this week, arguing that Bosa’s impact is so significant that he should be in the conversation for the league MVP award.
Only twice in the history of the NFL has a defensive player won league MVP. It last happened in 1986, when Lawrence Taylor — widely considered the greatest pass rusher in NFL history — won it as a member of the New York Giants. Before that, defensive tackle Alan Page won it as a member of the Minnesota Vikings. The last defensive players to receive MVP votes were J.J. Watt (finished second) and Bobby Wagner in 2014, when they accounted for 26 and 2 percent of the vote respectively.
With that history in mind, it’s not much of a surprise that Ian Rapoport of NFL Network doesn’t think Bosa should be in consideration for the award.
“I don’t think so,” Rapoport said Wednesday on KNBR. “I think because there’s so much other good stuff that happens with the 49ers, and I think what happens a lot of times is the MVP is a guy who you’re like, ‘All right, if he wasn’t here, this team would not be at all where it is.’ And I think Bosa is, to me, it’s an easy … Defensive Player of the Year is easy.”
The 49ers have six Pro Bowlers and arguably the most dynamic offense in the league, so it makes sense that Bosa doesn’t really qualify for MVP in the most literal sense. Still, Rapoport believes Bosa is far and away the favorite to win the defensive award.
“And I know there’s a lot of, What about Micah Parsons? Micah Parsons is awesome,” Rapoport said. “He is a truly excellent player who is dynamic. Just all the good things about Micah Parsons. The year Nick Bosa is having, it would be hard for anyone else to get Defensive Player of the Year.
“I just think MVP is a little farfetched because there’s a lot of good that’s going on, on offense, for instance, that Nick Bosa doesn’t have any part of. But this is all splitting hairs because he’s been so, so, so good, and Defensive Player of the Year is what the best defender should win.”
Bosa’s 17.5 sacks lead the NFL and are tied for second all time in franchise history with Fred Dean’s 1983 season. Bosa trails only Aldon Smith’s 19.5 during the 2012 season.
Patrick Mahomes is currently the odds on favorite to win NFL MVP.
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