The Sack King, the Iron Man, and the Disrupter: Analyzing the DPOY Finalists
NEW YORK, NY — The shortlist for the NFL’s most terrifying defender is official. The Associated Press has narrowed the Defensive Player of the Year race to three titans: T.J. Watt, Maxx Crosby, and Chris Jones. While edge rushers typically dominate this conversation, the 2024 finalists offer a masterclass in three distinct ways to wreck an offensive game plan. From record-breaking sack totals to “iron man” snap counts, the margin for error in this vote is razor-thin.
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The Analytics of Disruption
To separate these three, you have to look past the basic box score and into the specialized metrics that define elite defensive value. Here is how the final three stack up in the film room:
- T.J. Watt (Pittsburgh Steelers): Watt finished the year with 19.0 sacks, becoming the first player in history to lead the NFL in sacks three separate times. His value is built on efficiency; he recorded a pass-rush win rate of 25%, often beating double-teams to force the ball out of the quarterback’s hands before the second read developed.
- Maxx Crosby (Las Vegas Raiders): Crosby is the league’s ultimate high-volume worker. He led the NFL with 23 tackles for loss and played over 95% of his team’s defensive snaps. Most edge rushers rotate out to catch their breath; Crosby stays on the field to dismantle the run game, leading all finalists in “stops” near the line of scrimmage.
- Chris Jones (Kansas City Chiefs): Jones represents the interior threat. He reached 10.5 sacks from the defensive tackle position, a feat that is tactically more difficult than winning from the edge. By demanding a double-team on nearly 60% of his pass-rush snaps, he created the “displacement” that allowed the Chiefs’ young secondary to rank top-five in red-zone efficiency.
Inside the Huddle
“You can’t just slide your protection to one side and hope to survive. If you don’t account for Watt’s first step or Jones’ power in the A-gap, the play is dead before the quarterback even reaches the top of his drop. These guys don’t just fill stats; they change how you’re forced to call the game.” — Current NFL Offensive Line Coach
The Bottom Line & What’s Next
The voting for this award happened before the playoffs began, but the impact will be felt deep into the 2025 offseason. T.J. Watt is the frontrunner to take home the hardware based on his historical sack lead, which essentially dragged a struggling Steelers offense into a division title. However, the “narrative” support for Maxx Crosby’s relentless workload could steal several first-place votes.
For the Chiefs, Chris Jones being a finalist justifies the massive $95 million guaranteed contract he signed last spring. It proves he remains the most valuable interior defender in the post-Aaron Donald era. Watch for the final tallies on February 6 at the NFL Honors. If Watt wins, it cements his case as a first-ballot Hall of Famer. If Crosby or Jones pulls the upset, it signals a shift in how the AP values total defensive contribution over raw sack numbers. Either way, these three have set a new bar for what “dominance” looks like in the modern NFL.
