Have yourself a week, Devin Bush.
Bush, the Steelers' first-round pick in 2019, is enjoying a historic rookie campaign — no, seriously, check the stats — and now he has a little hardware from the NFL to prove it.
Following the Steelers' 24-17 win over the Chargers in Carson, Calif., Bush was named the AFC's Defensive Player of the Week:
Defensive Players of the Week (Week 6):
NFC: @Redskins S @TheHumble_21
(by @Headshoulders) pic.twitter.com/pUKhTyliVG
— NFL (@NFL) October 16, 2019
Joe Haden most recently won the award for the Steelers in 2018 with his eight-tackle, one interception performance during the team's 17-10 Week 15 victory over the Patriots at Heinz Field.
Against the Chargers, Bush tallied seven tackles (four solo), an interception and a fumble recovery for a touchdown while playing 89 percent of the team's snaps. On the season, Bush leads all rookies and ranks 10th in the NFL with 52 tackles. He leads the league outright with four fumble recoveries and is second among linebackers with two interceptions.
His knack for creating turnovers puts him in elite Steelers company. Only Jack Ham, Jack Lambert and Mike Merriweather have registered at least four fumble recoveries and two interceptions in a single season while wearing the black and gold.
And Bush still has 10 games to go.
Furthermore, he can predict the future, apparently. Speaking at the Rooney Complex before the team flew west for their matchup with the Chargers, I asked Bush when he would register his first career defensive touchdown. He'd come close at that point, so I lightheartedly threw that out there for him.
"This week. Sunday," Bush told me.
Then .... Yeah:
Needless to say, the Steelers' investment in him — trading up to No. 10 in the draft and sacrificing their first- and second-round picks in 2019, as well as their 2020 third-round pick — appears to be paying off thus far.
