Aldon Smith named NFC Defensive Player of the Week

In the least surprising decision in some time, the NFL has named Aldon Smith NFC defensive player of the week. The 49ers second year outside linebacker thoroughly dominated the Chicago Bears offensive line en route to 5 1/2 sacks. Smith set a Monday Night Football record for sacks and also climbed into the NFL lead with 15 sacks. He now has 29 through his first 26 games, marking the fastest to that mark. Reggie White and Derrick Thomas had 31 and 30 sacks through their first two full seasons, so Smith should be able to pass them before the end of this his second season.

What was so exciting about Smith's performance on Monday was the wide variety of moves he used to get past the Bears blockers. The Bears offensive line is wildly inconsistent, but even still, Aldon Smith showed a mix of speed and power that bodes well for his long term success.

In a related note, Von Miller was named AFC defensive player of the week. He had three sacks and two forced fumbles against the Chargers. Miller and Smith seem to have a friendly rivalry developing as they both mentioned the other at some point. After the 49ers win, Aldon was asked if he would contact Von and he said he'd probably text him. During the game, after one of Aldon's sacks, Von Miller sent out this tweet:

S/o to my dawg Aldon Smith is breasting! 4sacks!! #squad

— Von Miller (@MillerLite40) November 20, 2012