Denver Broncos cornerback Patrick Surtain II was named the 2024 NFL Defensive Player of the Year at Thursday night’s NFL Honors ceremony.
But at least one person involved in the show seemed to think that Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett would take the award home for the second straight year.
After he was announced as the winner, Surtain went on stage to give an acceptance speech. The graphic displayed in front of Surtain showed that the NFL Defensive Player of the Year was — Garrett.
Patrick Surtain II is the NFL Defensive Player of the Year.
Call it a hunch, but we think the graphics team was expecting someone else. pic.twitter.com/1aGAuaxwB4
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 7, 2025
Oops.
In fairness, Garrett would have been a worthy recipient. He recorded 14 sacks, equalling his total from his Defensive Player of the Year Award-winning season in 2023. Garrett also notched 22 tackles for a loss, five more than he had a season ago.
Surtain, though, was a worthy winner. He intercepted four passes, bringing one back for a touchdown. Surtain also defended 11 passes. And as is so often the case with great cornerbacks, those numbers only tell part of the story, as opposing quarterbacks generally shied away from challenging Surtain.
Perhaps Surtain will finally get his graphic when the NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award is handed out at next season’s NFL Honors show.
