NFL midseason awards: Who would win MVP, DPOY & more if season ended today?

Defensive Rookie of the Year

Similar to the Defensive Player of the Year award, voting for the rookie version is also heavily swayed towards defensive linemen, because their impact can be measured much more easily than guys in the back seven.

However, while the three most recent winners have all played on the edge, we’ve also had three interior D-linemen and linebackers each receive the honors in the 2010s.

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This season, we’ve seen some tremendous young corners make their mark on the league.

#1 Sauce Gardner

The transition from college to the NFL is challenging no matter the position, but quarterback and cornerback may be the most difficult ones in that regard. So considering any great play by young quarterbacks is typically highlighted, you rarely see guys at cornerback truly stand out at a young age.

In fact, the only two cornerbacks to win DROY since Charles Woodson in 1998 are Marcus Peters, thanks to leading the league in interceptions and pass deflections, and Marshon Lattimore, who had one of the greatest coverage seasons ever seen.

Sauce Gardner can easily be put in that conversation and he has lived up to the expectations of being the fourth overall pick. Right now, he’s tied for the lead in passes broken up (12), he’s intercepted two passes and hasn’t given up a touchdown since week two.

Gardner has allowed fewer than 30 yards and a passer rating below 67 in all but two of his games. He’s been outstanding in a zone-coverage-heavy New York defense on early downs. His presence has also made it very tough to attack windows between him and nearby teammates, thanks to his ability to squeeze receivers and decipher route patterns.

Right now, Sauce has the highest coverage grade among all cornerbacks, according to PFF (86.1). He’s also been an active contributor in run support, condensing the edge and being a secure tackler, missing only three of his 47 total attempts.

#2 Tariq Woolen

There was never any doubt that Woolen was a ridiculous athlete. His spider chart by Mockdraftable would basically be a perfect circle if not for average hand size. Woolen is 6’4” with the arm length of an offensive tackle arm at 33 ½ inches, yet he ran a 4.26 and had a 42-inch vertical jump at the combine.

Somehow, he slipped all the way to the fifth round of the draft – just like another pretty good corner they had in Seattle for years in Richard Sherman.

A fixture in the lineup from week one, Woolen leads all rookies with four interceptions, one of which he returned to the house in highly impressive fashion, and he’s broken up eight additional passes.

You'd expect Woolen to be a classic press-man corner, and he has some high-level reps on tape, but he’s actually been a massive piece in Seattle’s off-zone heavy scheme. He has the speed to carry routes down the sideline or post in cover-three, with the confidence to turn his head and locate the ball, as well as fall off his responsibility and disrupt the catch point on routes around him.

However, what is so impressive about a guy his size is the way he drives and even undercuts routes from quarters. The highest passer rating he allowed through the first six weeks was 60.4, but he’s just had his three worst games as a pro, allowing two touchdowns.

#3 Aidan Hutchinson

Looking back at preseason odds for this award, Hutchinson was the overwhelming favorite. Considering he was arguably the most pro-ready pass-rusher based on the success he had in his final year at Michigan and the fact that No. 1 pick Travon Walker was fairly raw technically, it felt like Hutch had a really clear path to the award.

Considering Detroit is giving up an NFL-high 29.3 points per game, not a lot of attention is heading its way. Still, Hutchinson has had a more than solid debut campaign for a team that has lost a lot of close games and rarely been in positive game-script situations.

Hutchinson leads all rookies with 4.5 sacks and nine additional QB hits, whilst being tied for number one (with the Chiefs’ George Karlaftis) in total pressures (24).

Comparing his pressure count to the rest of the Lions', the next-closest guy has only 11. He’s needed to be the alpha for that group, and while he hasn’t been as consistently dominant as people hoped he might be, he’s had flashes.

The rest of his production doesn’t do him justice, as he’s regularly been held on rush downs, and his three TFLs don’t reflect the way he's thrown off run plays by making ball carriers stop and try to find a different opening.

Honorable mentions: Devin Lloyd, Jack Jones & Jaquan Brisker