Seahawks DL Leonard Williams Named NFC Defensive Player of the Week

Leonard Williams' performance for the Seattle Seahawks against the New York Jets earned him recognition from the league.

Dec 1, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Seattle Seahawks defensive end Leonard Williams (99) celebrates his fumble return for a touchdown during the first half against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Seattle Seahawks defensive end Leonard Williams is celebrating after being honored by the NFL as the NFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance against the New York Jets.

Against his former team, Williams became the first player since at least 1982 with multiple sacks, an interception returned for a touchdown, and a blocked field goal in the same game. Williams is the second Seahawks player in as many weeks to earn the honor, following safety Coby Bryant last week.

Williams finished the game with four tackles, two sacks and a pick-six that proved to be crucial in the 26-21 victory. Seahawks assistant head coach Leslie Frazier spoke about Williams' candidacy for the Player of the Week Award on Monday.

"Whoever's doing the voting for Player of the Week, if it's not Leonard Williams, I don't know all the stats around the league. I don't know what's going to happen tonight in the Monday night game, but man, it's hard for me to imagine anyone being more dominant than Leonard was yesterday," Frazier said. "I think if we can continue this, there's going to be some talk about Defensive Player of the Year as well. He's having an incredible stretch, and I'm hoping that's going to continue, we all are."

Williams' recent two-game stretch is as good as any by a defensive lineman in recent memory, or even history. He now has 10 tackles, 4.5 sacks, six tackles for loss, six quarterback hits, a blocked extra point and a pick-six over Seattle's last two games.

The former Pro Bowl Seahawks defensive lineman had a strong case last week as well, but Bryant received the nod for Seattle instead in a game where the defense held the Arizona Cardinals out of the end zone.

The other weekly award winners alongside Williams were Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen, Los Angeles Chargers rookie cornerback Tarheeb Still, Jets return specialist Kene Nwangwu, Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving and Philadelphia Eagles punter Braden Mann.

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