6. Jeffery Simmons, DL, Tennessee Titans
You have to think at least one interior defensive lineman is going to make a push for Defensive Player of the Year this coming season. There were two guys we considered, and one we feel really bad about leaving off.
Jeffery Simmons genuinely has a case to be made as the most dominat interior player in the entire NFL right now. The guy we left off the list was Denver Broncos All-Pro Zach Allen, who finished 2nd behind only Myles Garrett last season in total QB hits.
With that in mind, Simmons was also a 1st-team All-Pro this past season, and set a career-high with 11 sacks, 21 QB hits, and 17 tackles for loss. Simmons was dominant on the interior, and he's only going to get better with the arrival of head coach Robert Saleh, as well as some help around him in the form of John Franklin-Myers, Jermaine Johnson, and 1st-round pick Keldric Faulk.
Simmons finished last season with the 3rd-best overall grade among IDL (per PFF), and had the #1 overall pass rush grade in the entire league.
5. Pat Surtain II, CB, Denver Broncos
There is only one word to describe Pat Surtain II at the cornerback position in today's NFL: Standard.
He's the technician everyone wants to model their game after. He is the standard at the cornerback position, even if Surtain doesn't have the same type of on-ball production of some of his peers in the league. The way teams approach Surtain is evidence enough of his pure dominance.
Surtain will get targeted, but teams try to flip the ball out to their receivers as quick as possible in order to catch Surtain in off coverage. He rarely -- if ever -- gets targeted downfield. And when he does, it usually doesn't end well for whoever is trying to attack him.
The average yards per target against Surtain are just 5.15 over the last two seasons combined. He's allowed 181 total yards after the catch in the last two years. He only had 1 interception last year (an incredible play against Green Bay), but his ball skills have been consistently on display enough in his career to know he's got DPOY stuff.
In fact, he's the 2024 winner of the award. He could win it again in 2026.
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