Nik Bonitto was shot out of a cannon to kick off the 2025 season. After the Broncos took down the Jets in London, Bonitto was on a tear with eight sacks and had jumped up to be the co-favorite to win the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year Award.
He began the season with 60-1 odds to bring the award to the Mile High city for the second straight year after Pat Surtain II did so in 2024. After Week 6, his odds sat at +330 (3.3-1) alongside Green Bay’s Micah Parsons and Detroit’s Aidan Hutchinson.
Three weeks later, as the midpoint of the NFL season is here, Bonitto’s name is no longer at the top of the list after he’s recorded just one sack in his last three contests, none in the last two. He also only has just one tackle in each of the last two games against the Texans and Cowboys.
As a result, his DPOY odds have dropped back down to +850. Parsons is now the clear favorite at +190, Cleveland’s Myles Garrett sits at +300 and Hutchinson is at +450. If Bonitto doesn’t have a bounce-back showing Thursday night against the Raiders, his hopes for winning the award this season could be dashed.
Despite the recent dip in production, Bonitto is still fourth in sacks and is ahead of both Parsons and Hutchinson in that department. He’s seventh in pass rush win rate (21%), and still has the top marks in quick pressures (22) and quick pressure rate (11%), but it’s clear that the rest of the league is slowly starting to catch up to him.
Thursday night’s clash against the Las Vegas Raiders will be a great opportunity for Bonitto to get back on track, as the Raiders have allowed 2.6 sacks per game, good for just 21st in the league. Geno Smith has been kept relatively clean as of late, but has been taken to the ground four or more times in three games this season. It’s no secret that the Broncos have one of the best pass rush units in the league, and that’s thanks to Bonitto’s immense talent screaming off the edge.
The Broncos’ Week 10 contest against the Raiders is set to kick off from Empower Field at Mile High at 6:15 p.m. MT on Thursday.
