Sports
MD Athlete Named NFL's Top Defensive Rookie
A Marylander won a prestigious NFL award. Here's how a DeMatha graduate became a star on the world's biggest stage.
UPPER MARLBORO, MD — Chase Young, a defensive end for the Washington Football Team, won the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year award on Saturday. Young hails from Upper Marlboro.
The Maryland native graduated from DeMatha Catholic High School in 2017. He went to Ohio State University where he played from 2017 to 2019. Washington selected Young with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.
The 21-year-old recorded 7.5 sacks and forced four fumbles in his award-winning first season. Young is Washington's first-ever Defensive Rookie of the Year.
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"It just gives me more motivation to just keep going, keep working," Young said in a video posted to Twitter.
Young's teammate, quarterback Alex Smith, also won an award. The Associated Press named Smith the Comeback Player of the Year.
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Smith broke his leg in 2018, and many questioned whether he would play again. After 693 days and 17 surgeries, Smith returned in 2020. The quarterback led Washington to a 7-9 record, a division title and its first playoff birth since 2015.
About last night...@youngchase907 became our first DROY in franchise history. ICYMI » https://t.co/9eR9nV8c9P pic.twitter.com/83RxECS9Bu
— Washington Football Team (@WashingtonNFL) February 7, 2021
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