Vikings S Harrison Smith earns prestigious award after incredible performance on Christmas Day vs. Lions

Minnesota Vikings safety Harrison Smith wins NFC Defensive Player of the Week award after incredible Christmas Day performance.

Tyler Forness — NFL & College Football News Writer
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Dec 25, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings safety Harrison Smith (22) eats a steak after the game against the Detroit Lions while being interviewed by Dianna Russini at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

For his incredible performance against the Detroit Lions on Christmas Day, Minnesota Vikings safety Harrison Smith won the NFC Defensive Player of the Week award. He was impressive on multiple levels for the Vikings, registering three tackles, three passes batted down, two tackles for loss, and one interception of Jared Goff.

Harrison Smith wins NFC Defensive Player of the Week award

Smith has been one of the best safeties in the league for the past decade, but it appeared he’d taken a step backward this year due to being 36 years old. What hasn’t waned is the intelligence of Smith, and his performance hasn’t surprised head coach Kevin O’Connell.

“Just not surprised in any way, shape or form,” said O’Connell after the game. “I credit Flo [for] really turning a lot over even more. So Harry’s [the] quarterback and a lot of things for us defensively, but in these games, especially against the divisional opponent, we obviously know each other well. So we wanted to give Harrison the ability to win the pre-snap in many ways. And then what, what I think he did tonight was win the post snap in many ways. And his leadership throughout this stretch, you know, has also been something that, you know, I’ll remember, you know, him amongst a lot of other guys.”

  • 2022: K Greg Joseph, Week 4 (Special Teams)
  • 2022: P Ryan Wright, Week 6 (Special Teams)
  • 2022: EDGE Za’Darius Smith, Week 8 (Defensive)
  • 2022: WR Justin Jefferson, Week 10 (Offensive)
  • 2022: RB Kene Nwangwu, Week 12 (Special Teams)
  • 2022: QB Kirk Cousins, Week 15 (Offensive)
  • 2022: K Greg Joseph, Week 16 (Special Teams)
  • 2023: ILB Jordan Hicks, Week 6 (Defensive)
  • 2023: S Cam Bynum, Week 7 (Defensive)
  • 2023: QB Josh Dobbs, Week 9 (Offensive)
  • 2023: ILB Ivan Pace Jr., Week 14 (Defensive)
  • 2024: EDGE Jonathan Greenard, Week 3 (Defensive)
  • 2024: QB Sam Darnold, Week 14 (Offensive)
  • 2024: EDGE Andrew Van Ginkel, Week 16 (Defensive)
  • 2025: QB J.J. McCarthy, Week 1 (Offensive)
  • 2025: CB Isaiah Rodgers, Week 3 (Defensive)
  • 2025: DT Levi Drake Rodriguez (Special Teams)
  • 2025: S Harrison Smith (Defensive)

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