Tag: rookies

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Rookies of the Week – Week 3

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50-point demolitions, supposed tanking teams pulling off shock wins, and a media frenzy in Kansas. Has the NFL ever been more eclectic than it is at the moment?

Anyway, let’s shake it off and take a look at the standout rookies from Week 3.

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De’Von Achane, Running Back – Miami Dolphins

Achane was outstanding in the Miami Dolphins’ 70-20 victory over the Denver Broncos, rightfully earning himself the AFC Offensive Player of the Week title.

Finishing with four touchdowns and 233 all-purpose yards, Achane became only the second player in NFL history to have two rushing touchdowns, two receiving touchdowns, and at least 200 rushing yards in a game.

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Brian Branch, Cornerback – Detroit Lions

Branch, who was unlucky not to get in my Week 1 article, was outstanding in the 20-6 win against the Falcons. Not only did he hold his own against Kyle Pitts and Drake London in coverage, but he also helped his team stifle fellow rookie sensation Bijan Robinson, limiting him to 60 total yards.

Finishing the game with two quarterback hurries, 11 solo tackles, three for a loss, and two pass breakups, Branch only seems to be getting better.

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Jalen Carter, Defensive Line – Philadelphia Eagles

Carter continued his dominant streak for the third consecutive week, wreaking havoc on Tampa Bay’s offensive line. With half a sack, a QB hit, four pressures, and a first-career forced fumble, he’s proving to be a game wrecker. His 20.5% pressure rate so far this season is not just good; it’s All-Pro level good.

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Christian Gonzalez, Cornerback – New England Patriots

Could Gonzalez be having a Sauce Gardener-type year? It may be early in the season, but if his start is anything to go by, then he is well on pace. In Sunday’s 15-10 win over the Jets, Gonzalez was lined up against Garrett Wilson on 23 of his 41 snaps and held him to only three catches for 18 yards.

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Sam LaPorta, Tight End – Detroit Lions

LaPorta continues his hot streak on this list thanks to an eight-reception, 84-yard showing where he also scored his first touchdown as a pro. He now leads all tight ends in receiving yards with 186 and is second in receptions to T.J. Hockenson.

It’s also a third week in a row for the rookie tight end! To put that into perspective, only two players got on the list three times last year: Garrett Wilson and Dameon Pierce, albeit on a smaller ranking list last year.

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C.J. Stroud, Quarterback – Houston Texans

If Week 2 saw Stroud sneak into my article over Anthony Richardson, then Week 3 was where he cemented his place. The young quarterback had 20 completions on 30 attempts for 280 yards and two touchdowns. His PFF grade of 91.1 when throwing from a clean pocket led all quarterbacks in the league.

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Tuli Tuipulotu, Edge Rusher – Los Angeles Chargers

The Chargers haven’t exactly wowed on defence, but that hasn’t deterred Tuipulotu from making his case as an early Defensive Rookie of the Year candidate, and his performance against the Vikings will only help his case. With nine pressures and three sacks in the game, he now totals 12 pressures and three sacks in just two starts this season.

Honourable Mentions: JuJu Brents (Colts), Tank Dell (Texans), Jahmyr Gibbs (Lions), Marvin Mims Jr. (Broncos), Michael Wilson (Cardinals)

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Rookies of the Preseason

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With the preseason now over, it’s time to introduce my new format for the rookie articles going forward. Rather than focusing in-depth on just three, I’m going to choose a top seven and post a shorter review, allowing for an easier-to-digest look at the rookies making their mark. So with that, let’s crown the seven rookies of the preseason!

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Aidan O’Connell, Quarterback – Las Vegas Raiders

A solid showing, playing in all three games and finishing with 43 completions on 62 attempts for 482 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions. He was rewarded for his outstanding preseason with a spot on the 53 man roster.

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Dorian Thompson-Robinson, Quarterback – Cleveland Browns

An impressive 37 completions on 58 attempts, 440 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions. Couple that with 96 yards and a rushing touchdown on five rushing attempts, and you see why DTR has jumped up from fourth on the depth chart to backup QB.

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Emanuel Wilson, Running Back – Green Bay Packers

An undrafted free agent topping the preseason rushing charts? Yep, that’s what happened with Wilson, who finished with 223 yards and two touchdowns on 38 carries. The 24-year-old made his case for a roster spot and got his wish on Tuesday.

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T.J. Bass, Offensive Guard – Dallas Cowboys

Another free agent who had a solid showing in his three games Bass played 130 snaps, allowing 0 pressures and 0 penalties across 80 pass-blocking snaps. That showing took him from buried on the depth chart to on the 53 man roster

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Nick Herbig, Outside Linebacker – Pittsburgh Steelers

Herbig had the NFL’s leading pass rush win rate in the preseason, as well as 3.5 sacks, eight stops, and one forced fumble. With T.J. Watt ahead on the depth chart, he’ll likely be a rotational option, but his speed and versatility will see him have opportunities this season.

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Steven Gilmore, Cornerback – Detroit Lions

You already have enough pressure when you are an undrafted rookie, but when your brother is Stephon Gilmore, you’ll get comparisons too. Luckily, Steven balled out! 131 snaps, two interceptions, four pass breakups, eight tackles, and a passer rating of 37.0 allowed. All stats that helped him get that roster spot

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Blake Grupe, Kicker – New Orleans Saints

Grupe, who has battled for the kicking job against Will Lutz, can hold his head high. One conversion from one attempt on extra points and five from six on field goals, with his only miss being a wide right on a 60-yarder He obviously impressed the Saints enough as Lutz was traded meaning Grupe is the new kicker.

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Week 16: Rookie Standouts

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With the usual Christmas slate running over the weekend, there was plenty of action on the table this week. With plenty of gifts being exchanged (Broncos, we’re looking at you), let’s look at the rookie standouts this week:

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Brock Purdy, Quarterback – San Francisco 49ers

Is it time to take Brock Purdy seriously as the 49ers start their march towards the playoffs? Purdy now has three starts under his belt and looks more like a starting quarterback in this league than some of his peers.

In Sunday’s game, Purdy posted career highs across the board, finishing with 234 yards passing on 22 attempts, averaging 10.6 yards per attempt. While he did throw an interception, he also threw for two touchdowns. Amazingly, the 49ers have scored 2.52 points per offensive drive with Purdy under centre, which ranks fourth in the NFL, and if you were to take away the kneel-downs, it would move to 2.76, which is good enough to be the best in the league. If he continues these stellar performances, then the 49ers are going to find themselves with a real quarterback headache next season, only a year after the last one.

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Kenneth Walker III, Running Back – Seattle Seahawks

Despite the Seahawks falling to a disappointing 24-10 defeat against the Chiefs, they can once again look to their rookie running back Kenneth Walker III as a bright spot for the future, even if they do end up missing out on the playoffs.

This past week was Walker’s third game this season where he has rushed over 100 yards, with him finishing this week with 26 carries for 107 yards at a rate of 4.1 yards per carry. The elusive Walker also forced five missed tackles, and he was able to move the chains six times. He’s now sitting at 803 yards for the season, and if he produces similar performances for the last two games, he could join Seahawks Ring of Honor member Curt Warner as the only backs in franchise history to break 1000 yards rushing as a rookie.

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Cobie Durant, Cornerback – Los Angeles Rams

It’s been a stop-start season for Cobie Durant, who shone during his debut in Week 2, but after finally getting some defensive game time in the last few weeks, it seems he’s gained the trust of the Rams coaching staff, and it’s starting to pay off for the rookie.

It was easily the young defensive back’s best game of his short career, as he finished with a pair of interceptions, one of which he returned 85 yards for a touchdown to seal the 51-14 blowout of the Denver Broncos. Both of his interceptions showcased his athleticism and instincts, with the first one being a highlight reel catch as he was able to extend, tip the ball to himself, and secure the catch as he hit the turf. The question that now arises is why the Rams did not give him an opportunity sooner.

Honourable Mentions

Kenny Pickett (Pittsburgh Steelers), George Pickens (Pittsburgh Steelers), Rachaad White (Tampa Bay Buccaneers), Isiah Pacheco (Kansas City Chiefs), Tyler Smith (Dallas Cowboys), and Brian Asamoah (Minnesota Vikings)

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Week 9: Rookie Standouts

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The halfway point has now been reached, and some of the stragglers are starting to slide away from playoff contention as the field becomes clearer. Here are three rookies that stood out this week.

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Kerby Joseph, Safety – Detroit Lions 

In the first three weeks of the season, Joseph didn’t even get a snap on the Lions defense, and it’s likely that he’d still be playing a limited role if not for the Achilles injury sustained by Tracy Walker. In the five weeks since he was thrust into the lineup, Joseph has had his fair share of teething issues but has slowly improved. However, no one could have foreseen what happened this week.

In the Lions’ improbable 15-9 win over the freefalling Green Bay Packers, not only did Joseph finish with 10 tackles and 3 pass breakups (including a key one on 3rd down), but he also picked off reigning MVP Aaron Rogers twice. This outstanding showing won him a well-deserved NFC Defensive Player of the Week.

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Dameon Pierce, Running Back – Houston Texans 

In a season that seems lost already, it’s difficult to find any kind of plus for the Texans as they rack up loss after loss. Luckily, their rookie class of Jaylen Pitre, Derek Stingley Jr., and Dameon Pierce have shown that not only are the Texans drafting well, they are getting impact players.

With the Texans’ two main wide receivers, Brandin Cooks and Nico Collins, ruled out, Pierce almost single-handedly kept the Texans competitive in their game against the Eagles, as he finished the game with a career-high 139 yards on 27 carries. Incredibly, his 139 yards were only 17 yards shy of the franchise record of 156 yards set by Steve Slaton in 2008 and Alfred Blue in 2014.

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Cade Otton, Tight End – Tampa Bay Buccaneers 

With Rob Gronkowski retiring and O.J. Howard leaving in free agency, drafting a tight end became a necessity for the Bucs, and at the start of the fourth round, they picked up the former Huskie, Otton. This season was supposed to be a learning experience, but Brate’s injury struggles forced the Bucs to use him sooner.

Luckily, what the Bucs have found is a more than ready replacement who is now starting to flash in the passing game as well as being a more than able blocker who might keep Brate out of the team regardless of his status. As the Bucs were staring at another loss, Brady hit Otton on the first pass of their final drive for a 28-yard gain before hitting him again for his first career touchdown, sealing the game for the Bucs with 9 seconds remaining.

Honourable Mentions

Sauce Gardner (New York Jets), Kenneth Walker III (Seattle Seahawks), Tyler Allgeier (Atlanta Falcons), Ikem Ekwonu (Carolina Panthers), Kader Kohou (Miami Dolphins)

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Week 7: Rookie Standouts

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With teams favoured in the offseason like the Packers, Bucs, and Broncos continuing to struggle, whilst the two written-off New York teams are shocking everyone, this NFL season seems to get stranger and stranger. In week 7, these were the rookies that stood out. 

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Kenneth Walker III, Running Back – Seattle Seahawks  

Running back seems to be a position I give a lot of love to, but the numbers some of these rookies are putting up are incredible. Unfortunately, Bryce Hall is now done for the season after his heartbreaking ACL injury, so the rookie rushing title seems to be between previous standout Dameon Pierce and this week’s standout Kenneth Walker III. 

Walker was thrust into the lineup after Rashaad Penny’s unfortunate season-ending injury, and the second rounder out of Michigan State has made the most of his opportunities. Against the Chargers, Walker was steadily working his way towards another 100-plus yard game before his blistering 74-yard touchdown run in the middle of the 4th quarter, which saw him hit 22.09 miles per hour, the fastest speed by a ball carrier this season. 

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Sam Williams, Edge – Dallas Cowboys 

In a defence that already has reigning defensive rookie of the year Micah Parsons, Dorance Armstrong and Demarcus Williams, the last thing the league wanted to see was another Dallas defender breakout, but that’s exactly what Sam Williams did despite playing less than a quarter of the defensive snaps against the Lions   

On a day where the Cowboys shared the wealth around with four different players recording a sack, Williams helped himself not only to his first ever career sack but followed it up with the smoothest strip sack and fumble recovery you will ever see, which effectively sealed the game for Dallas. After beating Penei Sewell around the edge, Williams seemed to literally take the ball out of Jared Goff’s hands before he even realised it was gone. 

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Jaquan Brisker, Safety – Chicago Bears  

Coming into Monday night’s game against the New England Patriots, few thought that the Chicago Bears’ defence would have much luck against the returning Mac Jones (and later Bailey Zappe), but that could not have been further from the truth, and two of the reasons why were Jaquan Brisker and Kyler Gordon. 

The former Penn State man, Brisker, gets the nod here due in part to there being two parts to his incredible interception of Jones that had a slight air of revenge about it. Early in the second quarter, Jones took off on a run, and as he slid down, he curiously raised his foot, which connected with Brisker in a certain sensitive area. Brisker’s revenge was swift and sweet, however, as mere minutes later he recorded his first career interception with a stunning one-handed grab that showed both his athleticism and anticipation skills. 

Honorable Mentions

Sauce Gardner (New York Jets), Coby Bryant (Seattle Seahawks), Aiden Hutchinson (Detroit Lions), Chris Olave (New Orleans Saints), Dameon Pierce (Houston Texans)

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Week 6: Rookie Standouts

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With this week marking the beginning of the bye weeks ruining many a fantasy football lineup, the NFL landscape remained unchanged as the low and close-scoring games continued. In week 6, these were the rookies that stood out.

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Bailey Zappe, Quarterback – New England Patriots

Bailey Zappe might well be starting to cause Bill Belichick a headache. In his two starts thus far for the Patriots, the 23-year-old rookie has looked impressive, which could put Mac Jones under pressure to ensure he performs when he returns from injury.

Zappe had a great day on Sunday, demonstrating his ability to go through his reads promptly and show good poise in the pocket, but most importantly, he didn’t turn the ball over. Although the young quarterback didn’t have a perfect day, he did become the first rookie in the Super Bowl era to win and record a QB rating of over 100 in each of his first two starts after finishing with 24 completions from 34 attempts for 309 yards and two touchdowns and an impressive 118.4 passer rating. It’ll be interesting to see who suits up next Monday against the Bears.

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Kayvon Thibodeaux, Edge – New York Giants

After missing out on the Giants’ first two games of the season, Thibodeaux has started to increase the pressure on opposing quarterbacks as his snap count has increased, and after multiple close calls last week against reigning MVP Aaron Rogers, this was the game where he was finally rewarded, and ironically, it’s the quarterback he revealed on Reddit in the preseason he most wanted to sack.

With the Giants having just taken the lead, the expectation was that Lamar Jackson would get one more drive to prevent the Ravens from blowing another 4th quarter lead, but Kayvon had other ideas. After blowing past tackle Patrick Mekari, he batted the ball out of Jackson’s hand to record his first sack and forced fumble. It meant a lot to the former duck, as shown by his emotional post-game video.

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Tariq Woolen, Cornerback – Seattle Seahawks

After making it into the honourable mentions list last week, it only felt right that Woolen made it onto this week’s, and it wouldn’t surprise me if the defensive rookie of the year conversations started. Fifth-rounder selections are normally a work in progress for a few seasons, and he was even labelled as a project pick, but Woolen is bucking that trend with dominant performances.

In this week’s outing against the Arizona Cardinals, he had five tackles, one stop, allowed four receptions on seven targets, snagged his fourth interception in his fourth straight game, and is now tied for the NFL lead with the Buffalo Bills’ Jordan Poyer. He also recovered a fumble after fellow rookie (and honourable mention) Coby Bryant stripped a scrambling Kyler Murray of the football in the redzone. Are we starting to see the emergence of a legion of boom 2.0? Time will tell.

Honourable Mentions

Sauce Gardner and Breece Hall (both New York Jets), Coby Bryant (Seattle Seahawks), Daniel Bellinger (New York Giants), and Arnold Ebiketie (Atlanta Falcons)

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Week 4: Rookie Standouts

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With the injury bug taking hold across multiple teams, there is a plethora of rookies making significant contributions to their teams. Let’s take a look at three that shone this week, including a couple that did so on their first ever starts

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Jamaree Salyer, Tackle – Los Angeles Chargers

The pressure on Salyer must have been immense as he was thrust into his first NFL game to protect Justin Herbert’s blindside due to All-Pro Rashawn Slaters’ injury. Salyer had predominantly been transitioning to guard in the offseason, but despite only having a week to reacquaint himself with his position at Georgia, he dominated on his side.

During the game, the sixth-round pick had a pass block grade of 90.4 and allowed 0 sacks, 0 pressures, and 0 hurries across 41 pass blocking snaps. The Chargers will likely have to rely on Salyer for the foreseeable future as the current timeline for Slaters’ return isn’t until late 2022 at the earliest.

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Dameon Pierce, Running Back – Houston Texans

Despite ending up on the losing side of the game against the aforementioned Salyer’s Chargers, Pierce himself also had a career day after sparking the fast fading Texans into life halfway through the second quarter.

With the Chargers up 21-0, the Texans looked down and out, but Pierce had other ideas. He took the handoff from Davis Mills and breezed past the Chargers’ defensive front for a 75-yard touchdown, and hauled them back into the game. The 113 rushing yards from the game took his total for the season to 313, enough to crack the top 10 above players like Derrick Henry and Dalvin Cook.

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Jack Jones, Cornerback – New England Patriots

Jack Jones had been eyeing up a pick all season on underneath passes, and finally his aggressive nature paid off. With the team down 3-7 just before the half, Jones jumped in front of Aaron Rogers’ pass intended for Allen Lazard and took it the 40 yards for the pick-six. Amazingly, this is only the second pick-6 Rogers has ever thrown at Lambeau Field.

Jones, who was starting due to a hamstring injury suffered by Jalen Mills, also caused a forced fumble and recovery earlier in the game as he punched the ball out of fellow rookie Romeo Dobbs’ hands.

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Rookie Roundup: Minicamp and OTA’s

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It seems like an age has passed since the end of minicamp, but the light at the end of the tunnel is finally in sight. July 18th sees the rookies from the Buffalo Bills and the Las Vegas Raiders as the first players to report for preseason training camp, with all players, both rookies and veterans, reporting by July 26th.All rookies will need to maximise the opportunities they are given this preseason, with rosters needing to be trimmed from 90 players at the beginning of camp down to the final 53 on the 30th of August.

As always, there will be a selection of rookies that had starting jobs from the moment their names were announced on draft day. However, there will be a few on the cusp of a starting role or trying to work their way onto the first team depth chart.

Let’s look at six rookies who, after their showings at OTA’s and minicamps in May and June, may have already started to force their way into contention.

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Christian Watson, WR, Green Bay Packers (Round 2, Pick 2)

Wide receivers are frequently overlooked by the Green Bay Packers in the first two rounds. In fact, Watson was the first they have taken since Devante Adams, the man he could potentially have been drafted to replace. He hasn’t shown any signs of the pressure getting to him, however, as he quickly built a connection with the current MVP, Aaron Rogers, by catching a deep ball during their first practise together, before continuing his trial by fire by lining up opposite Pro Bowler Jaire Alexander. It’s a promising start that, should it continue during training camp and preseason, could result in a starting position.

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Boye Mafe, EDGE, Seattle Seahawks (Round 2, Pick 8)

Mafe looks like he will be continuing the upward trajectory his career has taken so far. After starting at Minnesota with limited opportunities, he ended his collegiate tenure with an outstanding performance in the Senior Bowl in which he had three tackles for loss and a pair of sacks, one of which included forcing a fumble. Mafe has picked up where he left off and is already starting to catch the eyes of the Seahawks coaching staff, including Coach Carroll, who said, “He’s really talented. He’s the closest looking fit to Cliff Avril that we’ve seen. ” High praise indeed, being compared to the ex-Superbowl champion and Pro Bowler, and all this before he has put on the pads yet.

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George Pickens, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers (Round 2, Pick 20)

With Pickens only being able to play 4 games in his final season at college due to an ACL injury and given that multiple teams were apparently turned off by stories questioning his maturity and lack of discipline prior to the draft, it wouldn’t have surprised anyone if Pickens entered OTAs with a chip on his shoulder. Instead, he put his head down and got to work, making sure he could line up wherever the Steelers wanted him, something he did constantly during his tenure with the Bulldogs. It didn’t take long for him to show the Steelers coaching staff what he could do, making a spectacular bobbled catch on a pass that would have likely been too high for most receivers.

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Nakobe Dean, LB, Philadelphia Eagles (Round 3, Pick 19)

In what could end up being the steal of the draft, the Eagles were able to pick up the free-falling Dean after concerns regarding injuries and his perceived undersized body. Dean has immediately shown off both his versatility and football IQ by learning both the MIKE and WILL positions to ensure that he can contribute straight away. There has even been chatter amongst the local reporters that the rookie will end up wearing the green dot on his helmet, taking up the responsibility of communicating with the coaches and replaying the plays, which would also suggest he will be spending a lot of time on the field.

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Daniel Bellinger, TE, New York Giants (Round 4, Pick 7)

It is very rare to see a midround pick spend extended time with the starters, but that is exactly what has happened to Bellinger, and by all accounts, he has grasped his opportunity with both hands (pun intended). After being used as more of an extra offensive lineman at San Diego State and with the Giants’ signing veterans Seals-Jones and Akins in the offseason, it appeared that Bellinger would have to battle just to get a depth spot. However, he immediately impressed tight end coach Andy Bischoff. “He’s one of those rare guys today that can really do it all. He can block, he can protect, and what we want him to do is get open against man coverage. He can do all those things.”

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Isaiah Likely, TE, Baltimore Ravens (Round 4, Pick 34)

Standing out amongst a class of 11 rookies was always going to be a tall task, but that is exactly what the fourth-round tight end has done. Likely was the second tight end the Ravens drafted on day three and was taken only 11 picks after Charlie Kolar, but he seems to have separated himself from the pack by displaying his large catch radius and ability to get open. In the last minicamp session, Likely caught multiple touchdowns in red zone drills, but one, an incredible one-handed touchdown, caught the eye of Lamar Jackson, who remarked, “It was a tremendous catch, so the sky’s the limit.”