Patrick Queen was one of the NFL's best defensive rookies, and it appears he will use the voting results for Defensive Rookie of the Year as motivation.
Queen finished third in the voting behind the winner, defensive Chase Young of the Washington Football Team, and safety Jeremy Chinn of the Carolina Panthers, who finished second during the voting for the award announced Saturday night.
Young won by a wide margin with 42 ½ votes among the national panel of writers and broadcasters, followed by Young (4 ½ votes) and Queen (two votes). Buccaneers safety Antoine Winfield Jr. was the only other rookie to receive a vote with one.
Finishing third, and well behind Young in the voting, got Queen's attention.
Queen had a superb rookie season that got even better as the season progressed, finishing with a team-leading 106 tackles, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and one interception. The 28th selection in the 2020 draft, Queen was a starter from Week 1 and immediately became a playmaker.
Young, the second-overall pick out of Ohio State, finished with 42 tackles, 7.5 sacks and 12 quarterback hits for Washington. He missed one game because of injury, which came against Baltimore.
Queen was the AFC Defensive Player of the Week in Week 5 after recovering two fumbles against the Cincinnati Bengals, including one which he returned for a touchdown. With a full season under his belt, Queen figures to pick up where he left off in 2021.
