Shaq Barrett had a career year in his first season with the Bucs, and he’s getting national recognition because of it as Pro Football Talk has named Barrett as their defensive of player of the year.

Barrett had a breakout season after signing a one-year contract with Tampa Bay, where he broke the Bucs’ single season franchise record for sacks with 19.5, breaking Warren Sapp’s previous record of 16.5. Barrett came to Tampa Bay to get more playing time as a full time starter after being a backup on the Denver Broncos and had an immediate impact with the Bucs.

With 19.5 sacks, Barrett led the NFL with sacks on the season, edging out the Cardinals Chandler Jones by a half sack. Barrett also recorded 57 tackles, 19 tackles for loss, six forced fumbles and one interception along the way to earning his first Pro Bowl honors.

Barrett is set to be an unrestricted free agent, but Bruce Arians has shown intentions to bring Barrett back and Barrett has stated that he wants to be with the Bucs in 2020 as well. Barrett will be in contention for the NFL’s Defensive Player Of The Year Award with other candidates including Jones and Patriots cornerback Stephon Gillmore. You can read Pro Football Talk’s article here.