Former Star Texas A&M Football Player Wins NFL Defensive Player of the Year

Myles Garrett Wins NFL DPOY; Second Texas A&M Football Player to Win Award

Earlier tonight, former star defensive end for Texas A&M football and arguably the best player of the past decade to put on the Maroon and White, Myles Garrett, won the NFL defensive player of the year award. This honor makes him the second ever Aggie to win the NFL DPOY after Lester Hayes won it back in 1980.

Garrett notched 14 sacks this year and 33 solo tackles. He also forced four fumbles. Despite this being his first year to win the award, he had even more sacks and tackles in 2022, though not as many forced fumbles. He has been one of the most dominant defensive forces in the league for several years now, however, and it's time he had that recognized.

In true Aggie fashion, Garrett's greeting to the NFL Honors crowd was a "Howdy!" Through the ensuing cheers, you can hear some from the audience—presumably, also Aggies—responding in kind.

Myles has been a good Ag for quite some time now, and a fan favorite for the Browns faithful. Between he and Von Miller, too, there has been some great Maroon and White representation among the top pass rushers in the league.

As I mentioned, Myles is the second Aggie to win the NFL defensive player of the year award. Lester Hayes won it in the 1980 season, when he snagged 13 interceptions, and is one of only six cornerbacks to ever win it.

Another interesting fact that I found out in research for this article is that neither of the two chief rivals for the Aggies—the Texas Longhorns and the LSU Tigers—have ever had a player win the defensive player of the year. I know that not many DBs win the award, as I just mentioned, but for two schools that lay claim to the "DBU" moniker, it's interesting that neither has produced one good enough to win the top defensive honor in the league.

Congratulations, Myles! This was a well-earned award. It doesn't seem as though he is slowing down any time soon, either.