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Oakland Raiders: 2017 regular season team awards

By John Buhler

CARSON, CA - DECEMBER 31: Marshawn Lynch No. 24 of the Oakland Raiders breaks the tackle during the third quarter of the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at StubHub Center on December 31, 2017 in Carson, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
CARSON, CA - DECEMBER 31: Marshawn Lynch No. 24 of the Oakland Raiders breaks the tackle during the third quarter of the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at StubHub Center on December 31, 2017 in Carson, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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OAKLAND, CA – DECEMBER 03: Khalil Mack No. 52 of the Oakland Raiders strips Geno Smith No. 3 of the New York Giants of the ball for a turnover during their NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on December 3, 2017 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA – DECEMBER 03: Khalil Mack No. 52 of the Oakland Raiders strips Geno Smith No. 3 of the New York Giants of the ball for a turnover during their NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on December 3, 2017 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images) /

Defensive Player of the Year: Khalil Mack

It wasn’t even close. Frankly, we should just call it the Khalil Mack award for the foreseeable future. Since his second year in the league in 2015, Mack has been the best player on the Raiders. He was one of four Raiders to make the Pro Bowl in 2017 and will be the only member of the awful Oakland defense to represent the Silver and Black down in Orlando.

Mack was not an All-Pro level player in 2017. He didn’t garner an absurd number of sacks on this defense, though he did finish with 10.5 in his fourth year in the league. Rarely would we get a bad game out of Mack. His role did change in the Oakland defense a bit under Norton’s watch. Though that didn’t help the team in the early part of the year, it did show the versatile nature of Mack and why he is such a special player.

Mack wasn’t just a pass-rushing phenom this year, as he had to play more out on the edge in terms of run containment and what not. He finished the year with 61 tackles and 17 assists, as well as a three pass breakups, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

Once Pagano took over for Norton in Week 12, then Mack got back to business as the elite pass rusher we’ve all come to love over the years. He and pass-rushing buddy Bruce Irvin fed off each other most marvelously down the stretch. It felt like Mack and Irvin had really developed the chemistry on the outside we had been hoping for so long. Irvin had himself a near Pro Bowl season. We have to attribute Mack for much of the pass rush’s growth down the stretch.

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