Myles Garrett just took a massive step toward NFL immortality

Only three players in NFL history have been named AP Defensive Player of the Year three times — Lawrence Taylor, J.J. Watt and Aaron Donald.

We just got one step closer to forming a Mount Rushmore.

Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett, the NFL’s new single-season sack king, was officially named the 2025 DPOY by the Associated Press at NFL Honors in San Francisco on Thursday night. The award was presented to Garrett on stage by Michael Strahan, who announced it as a unanimous decision.

Garrett won the award for the second time overall — and the second time in three years — despite his team struggling to a 5-12 regular-season record. He just turned 30 years old in December, but at the rate he’s going, becoming the AP’s first four-time winner is definitely within reach.

Heck, a defensive player hasn’t won MVP since Taylor during the New York Giants’ Super Bowl championship season in 1986, so Garrett still has plenty to aspire for.

Garrett's already in elite company, as he's now the ninth player in NFL history to win multiple DPOY awards. In 2025, he became the first player in NFL history to reach 23 sacks in a season, doing so in the fourth quarter of Cleveland’s final game, and breaking the previous record of 22.5 held by both Strahan and T.J. Watt. He added a ridiculous 33 tackles for loss — a stat kept completely separate from sacks — which ranks second all-time behind Watt’s 39 TFLs during the 2012 season.

Myles Garrett is coming for the NFL’s most exclusive defensive club

While the individual honors are special and clearly mean something to Garrett — who was hoisted on his teammates’ shoulders following his record-breaking sack of Joe Burrow in Week 18 — receiving another major award in the shadow of Super Bowl LX has to hit home. Despite Garrett’s dominance, the Browns are 58-90-1 overall since his rookie year in 2017, and 1-2 over two playoff appearances; Garrett’s yet to experience the AFC Championship Game over his nine-year career.

Browns fans are hoping that changes in short order, as the franchise is currently embarking on a new era with Todd Monken as the new head coach. Monken’s an offensive guru, but improvement on that side of the football would serve the Browns well; their defense finished fifth in total EPA (expected points added) during the 2025 season.

Garrett probably deserved better at this year’s NFL Honors. He was the focal point of every opposing team’s opposing game plan, and all of that attention, coupled with an offense that was inept at times, led to far fewer true pass rushing opportunities than your average edge rusher. Had the Browns won more games and made the playoffs, he definitely would have been listed among the AP’s five finalists for MVP, and might’ve had a real case to take it home.

It’ll take something special, like leading the Browns to an AFC North title, for Garrett’s value to rise among the NFL’s top quarterbacks and truly challenge for an MVP award. For now, Garrett can focus on doing something that Taylor, Watt and Donald all did in their careers — win the AP DPOY award in back-to-back seasons.