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Jacksonville Jaguars' Foye Oluokun earns AFC Defensive Player of the Week award in Week 1
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- Jacksonville Jaguars' Foye Oluokun earns AFC Defensive Player of the Week award in Week 1
Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Foye Oluokun has been named the AFC's Defensive Player of the Week after a standout performance during the team's win over the Carolina Panthers in Week 1.
The NFL announced at noon on Tuesday , with Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen winning the AFC's offensive award and Steelers kicker Chris Boswell winning the AFC special teams honor.
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Oluokun has won player of the week two other times, both with his original team, the Atlanta Falcons , in 2020 (Week 9) and 2021 (Week 16).
Oluokun was signed by the franchise as a free agent during the 2022 offseason and has been a leader on the team's defense ever since. Oluokun has been a captain for the franchise for three years (2022, 2023 and 2025).
Against the Panthers, Oluokun capitalized on opportunities presented to him. The first one came on a tipped ball that the linebacker made an impressive play on to pick off. The second came on a play during the second half when Oluokun forced a fumble on Carolina quarterback Bryce Young . The fumble was recovered by cornerback Jourdan Lewis , who was signed by the franchise in free agency this year.
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Oluokun finished with 10 tackles, one interception, one forced fumble and a pass breakup. The Jaguars dominated defensively against Carolina after forcing 5 "takeaways," including three turnovers and two turnovers on downs.
Lewis was vocal immediately following Oluokun's performance, saying the linebacker ought to be named an All-Pro and should have been even before this year.
Oluokun has had multiple impressive seasons in the league through seven years. Oluokun led the league in tackles for two straight seasons (2021-22). He led in total tackles (184) and solo tackles (128) in 2022. In 2023, Oluokun led the league in solo tackles with 111.
After the game, Oluokun acknowledged Lewis' remarks, saying the two were similar as far as the perceptions of their careers are concerned.
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"I appreciate J-Lew shouting me out like that because he knows. We're close, so he knows kind of the little stuff that I think about as my career has gone on," said Oluokun in postgame Sunday.
"It is what it is, but I just want to keep producing how I know I'm capable of producing, and all that stuff comes as it comes, but I can't control that. I can play well for my boys, for sure."
Despite Oluokun's performances, he has not been selected in either the Pro Bowl or as an All-Pro.
Moving forward, expect Oluokun to remain one of the team's primary leaders. Perhaps becoming more of a playmaker in defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile's scheme.
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"I feel like I had good years being a playmaker, and I felt that kind of same energy just how they stressed about talking about the ball, the ball, the ball," Oluokun said after the game.
"So, getting back to that, I put it on myself really, because I put it out to you all I wanted to be a playmaker. They gave me the opportunity to have my eyes back more on the ball, maybe breaking up, not having to run all over the place with wheel routes and stuff."
Demetrius Harvey is the Jacksonville Jaguars reporter for the Florida Times-Union. You can follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @Demetrius82 or on Bluesky @ Demetrius .
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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars' Foye Oluokun earns NFL AFC Defensive Player of the Week Award
