J.T. Tuimoloau wasn’t the only Buckeye defensive lineman to earn national defensive player of the week honors this week.
Former Ohio State defensive tackle Dre’Mont Jones was named Wednesday as the NFL’s AFC Defensive Player of the Week, earning that honor for the second time in his pro career after recording three tackles for loss in the Denver Broncos’ 21-17 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
AFC Players of the Week! (Week 8) @KingHenry_2 | @TheOfficial_80 | @nickfolk2 pic.twitter.com/groeVz9sE7
— NFL (@NFL) November 2, 2022
Jones recorded a season-high seven total tackles in the Broncos’ victory, which came in the NFL’s final London game of the season, and took down Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence for a sack.
“I thought I had a hell of a game,” Jones told reporters after the game.
For the season as a whole, Jones has now recorded 31 total tackles with eight tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, eight quarterback hits and a forced fumble. The former Ohio State defensive lineman is having a career year at the right time, as the 2019 third-round draft pick is in the final year of his rookie contract with the Broncos, setting him up to cash in with a big contract next offseason.
“He is one of our core players, we want Dre’Mont here a long time,” Broncos general manager George Paton told reporters Tuesday. “We'll just leave it at that.”
Jones is the first player from Ohio State to earn an NFL player of the week award this season.
