The regular season of the NFL is drawing to a close, with only a handful of teams vying for a position in the postseason. Along with the end of the season, the league, teams and players make their choices for a variety of awards and honors to be doled out, and one of these is the NFL Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY) award. Oddsmakers have taken to the boards to put up the favorites to win and, of all the possibilities available, one player stands out among the crowd for the honor and could be the first in his position in ten years to take home the prize.

Only six cornerbacks in the history of the NFL have ever won the DPOY award – only one of these was in the past decade. Stephon Gilmore of the New England Patriots could be the seventh, and is coming off an incredible year. His name has been mentioned a lot this season, but it wasn’t until Week 15 that he powered his way to the top of the list, thanks to his performance against the Cincinnati Bengals.

During that game, Gilmore picked up two interceptions, one of which he ran all the way back for a touchdown from the Pats own 40-yard line. He also picked up two tackles and deflected four passes as the Pats rolled over the Bengals, 34-13.

Before that game, Aaron Donald of the LA Rams had been the favorite among oddsmakers for the DPOY. The defensive tackle has also shown a lot of depth this year, but Gilmore’s actions propelled him over Donald and, according to BetOnline, put him at -300 for the award. Donald is the next closest, but at a distant +600.