Patriots’ Kyle Van Noy named AFC Defensive Player of the Week

New England Patriots linebacker Kyle Van Noy was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week after a 16-10 victory against the Buffalo Bills.

The accolade could’ve easily gone to Jamie Collins, J.C. Jackson or even Devin McCourty — but, Van Noy was also very deserving. The Patriots had a stellar defensive game against Buffalo and walked away with four interceptions, five sacks and a blocked punt returned for a touchdown.

Patriots LB Kyle Van Noy (8 tackles, 2 sacks) played every snap against the Bills on Sunday and made a big impact, and now has been named AFC Defensive Player of the Week.

— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) October 2, 2019

Van Noy played every snap in the game and finished with eight tackles and two sacks — along with a hit on quarterback Matt Barkley that ended the game.

Kyle Van Noy and Jamie Collins and the #Patriots defense bails out Tom Brady and the offense 16 – 10 pic.twitter.com/I0TDSYZvJR

— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) September 29, 2019

Van Noy has been a staple in this defense since 2016 and his Week 4 performance against Buffalo was just a glimpse of the impact he makes.

This is the first time Van Noy’s career that he’s earned this award and it’s the first time a Patriot has earned in since Dont’a Hightower did in 2016.