First round pick Bud Dupree has been elected as the 2015 Pittsburgh Steelers’ Joe Greene Rookie Of The Year. Steelers.com’s Missi Matthews was the first to tweet out the news.
While he has played reasonably well for a relatively raw outside linebacker, truthfully, there was limited competition for the award. The only other player you could argue is Jesse James but he only saw 169 offensive snaps this season, lessening his impact. No other rookie has played more than 34 snaps on their respective side of the ball this year.
Dupree has played in every game this season, rotating almost evenly with Arthur Moats. Dupree ranks second in Steelers’ outside linebackers with four sacks, three of which came in the first five weeks. His play has dropped off, even admitting that he’s hit the dreaded rookie wall. With one week to go, he’s sitting at 24 tackles and 4 sacks.
He is the first defensive player to win rookie of the year since Patrick Bailey in 2008. Considering Bailey’s impact came entirely on special teams, Dupree is the first “true” defensive player to win the award since Troy Polamalu in 2003.
Martavis Bryant was the Steelers’ Joe Greene winner in 2014.
