Buffalo Bills: Should A.J. Klein have won Defensive Player of the Week?
Should Buffalo Bills linebacker A.J. Klein have been named Defensive Player of the Week?
The Buffalo Bills got big performances on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball. On Wednesday morning, quarterback Josh Allen was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week as he threw for over 400 passing yards and had four total touchdowns.
However, A.J. Klein’s performance was equally impressive and there is a case to be made that he should have won the AFC Defensive Player of the Week. He finished the game with five total tackles, four QB hits, two sacks, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.
The award instead went to defensive tackle Jeffrey Simmons of the Tennessee Titans who finished the game with three total tackles, one pass defended one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery.
There is no question that Klein had the better stat line than Simmons and likely should have won the award. It is interesting that this is the second week now that the Bills had two potential candidates for the award in the same week.
In Week 7, defensive end Jerry Hughes was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week after six total tackles, two sacks, one forced fumble and one interception.
However, in this game against the New York Jets, rookie kicker Tyler Bass made six field goals on eight attempts. He accounted for every point the Buffalo Bills scored but wasn’t named AFC Special Teams Player of the Week. Instead, the award went to Kansas City Chiefs’ Byron Pringle, who had a 102-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.
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A case could be made to give the award to a returner for a touchdown on a kickoff as it is not as common. However, the difference between Simmons’ and Klein’s performance is pretty significant and A.J. Klein should have won the award for AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his play in Week 9.