TEMPE, Ariz. -- It likely won't matter how good of a season Arizona Cardinals defensive end Chandler Jones has in 2018.

If the previous 11 seasons are an indicator, Jones won't win Defensive Player of the Year regardless of the stats he produces. And through seven games, he's having the most well-rounded season of his seven-year career.

Through seven games, Jones has 6.5 sacks, eight quarterback hits, six tackles for loss, four pass breakups, four batted balls, three forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, 10.5 disrupted dropbacks and a disrupted dropback percentage of 4.0 -- the highest in the NFL, according to ESPN Stats & Information. He's had seasons with more production in a singular category, but never has he been as productive across the board.

However, the last time a player won Defensive Player of the Year honors from a losing team was 2006, when Hall of Fame defensive end Jason Taylor won it on a 6-10 Miami Dolphins team. Since then, J.J. Watt came closest to that honor coming from a losing team when his Houston Texans went 9-7 in 2014 and 2015, the consecutive seasons he won the award.

"I'm not having a Defensive Player of the Year type of year, because if I was, I would be helping the team win more," Jones said. "That's how I look at it.

"I'm the type of player that's putting it all on me. A lot of plays I left out there. Some people can say I've had a decent season. A lot of times when you talk about Defensive Player of the Year, which ultimately should be every defensive player's goal, when you talk about things like that, one of the biggest factors is, what's the team's record. How is he helping the team win? What is Chandler Jones doing to help the team win? Right now, at 1-6, I'm not doing enough."

To his credit, Jones is one of the lone bright spots for a defense that has struggled all season.

The Cardinals' run defense, once the unit's strong suit, is ranked last in the NFL in yards allowed per game. Overall, the Cardinals' are ranked 24th in total yards allowed per game and have been on the field the longest of any defense in the league.

All while Jones continues to build on 2017, when he led the NFL with 17 sacks. That Jones has filled the stat sheet as much as he has this season has veteran safety Antoine Bethea believing Jones is still making a case to be the Defensive Player of the Year.

"From sacks, tackles for loss, quarterback hits, quarterback pressures, he's doing it all for us," Bethea said. "And it's crazy for us to say I know he can take it to another level, but he's one of the most dynamic defensive players in our league."

Jones is thriving in the Cardinals' 4-3 system that's new to him but similar to the scheme in which he flourished in New England.

He had to get reconditioned to playing with his hand in the dirt and not solely on the outside after spending the past two seasons as a stand-up, edge-rushing outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme. The main difference, Jones explained, is that in a 3-4, he always knew how he was going to get blocked. In a 4-3, the blocking varies depending on where he lines up. Jones put back on weight he lost last season to help him line up across from blockers.

He dropped to about 255 pounds during training camp in 2017 -- the weight he played at last season. He reported to camp this year at 280 -- "really high" for him, Jones said -- and has stayed around 270.

The added weight hasn't slowed him down. He's had a sack in six of seven games this season, including 5.5 in his past five. In Week 5, Jones had six tackles, including two for losses, a sack, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery to help the Cardinals to their only win of the season, over the San Francisco 49ers. It also earned him NFC Defensive Player of the Week.

"You'd love for him to perform like that each and every week," coach Steve Wilks said. "I think he practices that way and hopefully we can just continue to carry it on in the game."

Jones has won a Super Bowl. He's been to Pro Bowls. He's been named an All-Pro. But winning Defensive Player of the Year would be the stamp on his career -- the validation every defensive player wants.

"Just something you can tell your kids about," defensive end Markus Golden said. "That's forever. That's a forever thing. You can die and people still talk about it. He's that type of guy. That's really who he is man. That's who is since he got here."