LA Rams News: Donald named PFWA’s 2020 Defensive Player of the Year

LA Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald had better invest in a larger trophy case because the awards continue to pile up like a snowball rolling downhill. . . and deservedly so. LA Rams News reported yesterday, January 20, 2021, that the LA Rams defensive tackle was voted the Pro Football Writers Association 2020 Defensive Player of the Year.

This is actually the second time he’s garnered this particular award, as he also received the same accolade in 2018.

It’s generally viewed as a runner-up to the Associated Press’ Defensive Player of the Year award – kinda like the Golden Globes are viewed as the runner-up to the Academy Awards’ Oscars. The AP Defensive Player of the Year is scheduled to be announced on the night before Super Bowl LV, at the NFL Honors show.

Seven years in the league – seven Pro Bowls, as voted by his fellow players and peers. Now the professional sportswriters give him the nod as this year’s most feared defender. He is only one of three defensive linemen to be honored with this award and only the first to be named as the recipient multiple times. The superlatives keep coming.

Donald has also nabbed the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year and twice been named as the AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year, back-to-back years, too, in 2017 and 2018. There have been two players who’ve won that award three times – Deion Sanders and J.J. Watt. Mean Joe Greene, wild-eyed Mike Singletary, ferocious Bruce Smith, unstoppable Reggie White (once with Philly and once with Green Bay), the inimitable Ray Lewis, and Aaron Donald have each won it twice.

There’s not much to add other than the words of the PFWA itself which issued the following about why they named Donald as the most dominant player in the entire league on the defensive side of the gridiron, and they simply let his 2020 stat-line speak for itself:

For the season, Aaron Donald played in all 16 regular-season games and both of the Rams playoff contests. Donald got to the opposing quarterback for 13.5 sacks in 11 different games. He forced four fumbles, one fumble recovery, 28 quarterback hits, and 45 tackles for the season. And he did it while facing double or even triple teams.

So better back the truck up to haul off the shiny baubles – there’s surely more to follow, Rams fans.