NFL futures: The case for Haason Reddick winning Defensive Player of the Year
Including the postseason, no player in the NFL recorded more sacks than Philadelphia's Haason Reddick. His 19.5 total sacks was a powering source to the Eagles' success, and he was the driving factor in Philadelphia nearly setting the NFL record for most sacks in a single season.
Despite that, Reddick finished just fourth in Defensive Player of the Year voting. National media is starting to pick up on Reddick's star power, and as we head into 2023, he offers us a nice value spot in this market.
Haason Reddick: +3000 to win DPOY (FanDuel)
We've spent a lot of time in this series already discussing the edge rusher position and how it's the clear position to target for the most part based on the past dozen years.
Sacks get people's attention. That isn't to say it's an empty statistic, quite the opposite. It's just that showcasing a player with higher sacks makes it easier for someone to quickly quantify a player's impact, especially when considering how differently fans and media alike view defensive players.
With all that in mind, Reddick could easily lead the NFL in sacks this season. He's been on three different teams in his last three years, finishing with sack totals of 12.0, 11.5 and 16.0 in his past three regular seasons.
For Reddick to win this award, he likely needs to find himself in that 18.0 to 20.0 range, but why couldn't he get here? He likely put himself on the map nationally with the game-wrecking abilities he showed in the NFC Championship Game, when his sacks forced both 49ers quarterbacks out with injuries. We're not here commending injuring a player, but one can't deny that Reddick stamped his name all over that game.
Reddick also has the benefit of playing on a loaded defense, both in the secondary and along the defensive line. That secondary play should force QBs to hold the ball a bit longer, and the depth and talent on the line both keeps Reddick fresh and should give him more one-on-one matchups than some other star edge rushers may get.
The environment is all there for an even better 2023 season for the Eagles edge rusher, and at +3000, he offers us a nice payout compared to some of the other choices we've been drawn to thus far.
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