San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa was named the AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year at Thursday's 12th annual NFL Honors ceremony. He beat out nominees Chris Jones, defensive tackle of the Kansas City Chiefs, and Micah Parsons, pass rusher of the Dallas Cowboys.
"A lot more nervous than I thought. Mom, dad, Joey, I love you more than anybody," Bosa said in his acceptance speech. "You're the reason I wake up every morning. I love you. Thanks for always being there for me. To the 49ers organization, from the Yorks and the DeBartolos down, thank you so much for doing stuff the right way and believing in me. To the number one defense in the league, shout out all to my guys who make my job a lot easier. It's a team sport. I just do my job.
"If I've learned one thing in life up to this point, whatever end goal you have in mind, it's not going to be a smooth path. There's going to be times where you're questioning yourself. But if you stay the course and you believe in yourself, take it one day at a time, there's going to be a light at the end of the tunnel. Thank you."
A well-deserved honor for the DPOY @nbsmallerbear 👏
📺: #NFLHonors on NBC pic.twitter.com/kJXZie0LOC
— NFL (@NFL) February 10, 2023
Bosa finished the 2022 season with a league-leading 18.5 sacks, adding 51 tackles, 19 tackles for a loss, 48 quarterback hits, a pass defensed, and two forced fumbles. Per Pro Football Focus, his 90 total pressures tied with Parsons for the most in the league.
Bosa's Pro Football Focus overall grade of 90.9, pass rush grade of 90.9, and tackle grade of 71.4 are career highs. He earned first-team All-Pro honors and was selected to his third Pro Bowl roster.
"I think, first of all, with Nick, in my heart of hearts, he deserves to be the Defensive Player of the Year in our league, and I hope that comes his way because he's earned that," general manager John Lynch said last week. "He's a fantastic football player. He's a game-changer of a football player."
San Francisco made Bosa the No. 2 overall pick, selecting him out of Ohio State in the 2019 NFL Draft. The talented pass rusher was named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in his first season.