Linebacker James Harrison of the Pittsburgh Steelers is the 2008 GMC Sierra Defensive Player of the Year, GMC and the National Football League announced Thursday.
More than 672,000 fan votes were submitted for the 2008 GMC Sierra Defensive Player of the Year on NFL.com from Jan. 3 through Jan. 29.
Harrison was one of five finalists for the honor. The other finalists were defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth of the Tennessee Titans, linebacker Joey Porter of the Miami Dolphins, free safety Ed Reed of the Baltimore Ravens and linebacker DeMarcus Ware of the Dallas Cowboys.
The five finalists were selected for their outstanding performances throughout the 2008 NFL season. Each week, five nominees were chosen for GMC Sierra Defensive Player of the Week and NFL fans voted for the winner on NFL.com. Those results were used to help determine the finalists.
This is GMC's fourth year as the official vehicle of the NFL and the second year that GMC will present the Defensive Player of the Year award.
Harrison totaled 16 sacks during the season, including three in Week 1 in the Steelers' 38-17 win over the Houston Texans. In Week 11, Harrison had a sack, forced a fumble and recorded a safety in one play. Harrison made four tackles and returned an interception 33 yards in the Steelers' 11-10 win over the San Diego Chargers. He led the Steelers' defensive effort with nine tackles, two sacks and two forced fumbles, both recovered by Pittsburgh, in the Steelers' 33-10 win over the New England Patriots in Week 13. Harrison notched a career-high 101 tackles in 2008, and he was nominated for two GMC Sierra Defensive Player of the Week awards, winning both times.