Offensive rookie of the year predictions

[flyerhawk]

That would be crazy for Seattle to not take better advantage of Lockette than that. I haven't seen him play a lot, but each time I saw him play the past two years he looked to me like he is a special player. Certainly not a favorite to win OROY, but I think he has a legitimate shot to become Wilson's new best friend.

Tyler Lockett has caught 91% of his targets over the last 6 games. That is pretty insane.

 

[Sharkonabicycle]

Tyler Lockett has caught 91% of his targets over the last 6 games. That is pretty insane.

Yah, Lockett and Rawls are going complete HAM mode. Gurley has dropped off big time since his first few starts.

Still, Amari Cooper is dominating at the NFL level. He has quite a few drops, but still... he has transformed that offense. He gets my vote to date.

 

[flyerhawk]

Yah, Lockett and Rawls are going complete HAM mode. Gurley has dropped off big time since his first few starts.

Still, Amari Cooper is dominating at the NFL level. He has quite a few drops, but still... he has transformed that offense. He gets my vote to date.

Cooper has been targeted the most of any rookie. But he also leads the league in dropped passes.

Right now I think the race for OROY is up for grabs. I think any of the following could do it.

Jameis Winston
Marcus Mariota
Thomas Rawls
TJ Yeldon
Amari Cooper
Stefan Diggs
Tyler Lockett
Jamison Crowder

IMO, it will come down to who is playing the best in the last 3 weeks of the season.

 

[Sharkonabicycle]

Cooper has been targeted the most of any rookie. But he also leads the league in dropped passes.

Right now I think the race for OROY is up for grabs. I think any of the following could do it.

Jameis Winston
Marcus Mariota
Thomas Rawls
TJ Yeldon
Amari Cooper
Stefan Diggs
Tyler Lockett
Jamison Crowder

IMO, it will come down to who is playing the best in the last 3 weeks of the season.

Rawls is up there for sure. Disagree entirely with Mariota and Yeldon.

 

[cdumler7]

To me Winston is quickly separating himself from the crowd. He has played great over this past month, his team is finding some ways to win, and he plays at the most premium position on the field. Unless he really falls apart over these final few weeks I just can't see anybody leap frogging him.

 

[flyerhawk]

Rawls is up there for sure. Disagree entirely with Mariota and Yeldon.

They probably won't win it but a strong finish could get them there.

 

[Fountain City Blues]

Rawls

 

[ducky]

With the way they are feeding Rawls and with some good matchups coming up, he very likely will finish with around 1100 yards rushing when the season is over.

Gurley if STL can figure it out a little might get close to that as well.

Cooper should be about 1200 yards receiving.

Winston about 3700 yards passing.

Crazy good year for rookies. I would have a tough time voting. Right now maybe Cooper....but Rawls is closing in on it. And in the end I might just vote for Jameis anyways.

For me though I look at how good the player is at their position. Winston is still a below average QB while Cooper is an above average WR. If Rawls closes out the season like I think he will or if Gurley comes back to life, either will be a top 5 RB in the league this year. If that happens I give it to Rawls or Gurley.

 

[Balljim55]

It is Winston's to lose, but I have to give it to Cooper.
He is already considered to be in the upper echelons of receivers playing today - Winston is not.
Tyler Lockett would win the most exciting player - hands down but he doesn't get enough touches

 

[flyerhawk]

I should have put Gurley on the list but I think he is a long shot given the state of that team and the games he missed.

 

[Broncos6482]

To me Winston is quickly separating himself from the crowd. He has played great over this past month, his team is finding some ways to win, and he plays at the most premium position on the field. Unless he really falls apart over these final few weeks I just can't see anybody leap frogging him.

I agree. Decent numbers, high profile position, comes from a big school and has a recognizable name, and his team is playing well and is much improved from last year.

 

[flyerhawk]

To me Winston is quickly separating himself from the crowd. He has played great over this past month, his team is finding some ways to win, and he plays at the most premium position on the field. Unless he really falls apart over these final few weeks I just can't see anybody leap frogging him.

He had a monster game against the Eagles. Otherwise pretty pedestrian numbers.

If he finishes strong and gets the Bucs to a winning record then I think he has a great chance. But if they falter and wind up 7-9 or 8-8 then I have a hard time seeing him get it given the performances of some of the other rookies.

 

[Hank Kingsley]

Pretty close call between Amar Cooper and Melvin Gordon.

I think folks must not watch the Raiders cause Cooper is a stud.

Gordon has the dropsies....

 

[cdumler7]

He had a monster game against the Eagles. Otherwise pretty pedestrian numbers.

If he finishes strong and gets the Bucs to a winning record then I think he has a great chance. But if they falter and wind up 7-9 or 8-8 then I have a hard time seeing him get it given the performances of some of the other rookies.

He is playing on the worst team in the league from last year. To me even improving to say 7-9 or 8-8 is a huge step up for that team and Winston is at the forefront of why that happened. That is why I think he gets the nod even with pedestrian numbers.

I mean Rawls has been a great story but he is playing on a team that has been one of the best running teams in the league that is usually playing with the lead meaning more opportunities. I think that will factor in. I think Rawls is a great player but I just don't think he will have done something others will think another player could have stepped in and done on that team.

Cooper and Winston to me are the top choices. Cooper has been a huge upgrade for the Raiders. I looked at the stats a couple of weeks ago and honestly Carr isn't doing much different than what he did his rookie year. The difference is in the talent around him. It takes Carr from a bottom half of the league QB to top-10 this year.

 

[flyerhawk]

He is playing on the worst team in the league from last year. To me even improving to say 7-9 or 8-8 is a huge step up for that team and Winston is at the forefront of why that happened. That is why I think he gets the nod even with pedestrian numbers.

I mean Rawls has been a great story but he is playing on a team that has been one of the best running teams in the league that is usually playing with the lead meaning more opportunities. I think that will factor in. I think Rawls is a great player but I just don't think he will have done something others will think another player could have stepped in and done on that team.

Cooper and Winston to me are the top choices. Cooper has been a huge upgrade for the Raiders. I looked at the stats a couple of weeks ago and honestly Carr isn't doing much different than what he did his rookie year. The difference is in the talent around him. It takes Carr from a bottom half of the league QB to top-10 this year.

All fair points. As I said, I think a lot will depend on how the players finish out the season. Winston plays well then I think he gets it. Cooper needs to avoid the typical late season swoon that many rookie receivers and RBs get given his playing time.

Rawls will really need to play extremely well to get serious consideration. If he maintains the 130 yards per game average he has maintained so far that would get him near 1300 rushing. That could be enough especially if he keeps getting a TD per game. But that's a big ask.

 

[cdumler7]

All fair points. As I said, I think a lot will depend on how the players finish out the season. Winston plays well then I think he gets it. Cooper needs to avoid the typical late season swoon that many rookie receivers and RBs get given his playing time.

Rawls will really need to play extremely well to get serious consideration. If he maintains the 130 yards per game average he has maintained so far that would get him near 1300 rushing. That could be enough especially if he keeps getting a TD per game. But that's a big ask.

Yeah when there is still 1/4th of the season left to play too early to be saying somebody has something locked up. It wouldn't surprise me to see Winston go out and have a 4 interception type game really bringing him back to the crowd of great rookies. Cooper does seem to have had some drop off from what he was doing earlier in the year. I have seen him drop way too many passes. I actually said this to a Raider fan before the draft that if you take Cooper you are definitely getting a talent but be ready for him to have some drops. He is a body catcher and is looking to make a play up the field. That combination usually leads to more drops.

 

[flyerhawk]

Yeah when there is still 1/4th of the season left to play too early to be saying somebody has something locked up. It wouldn't surprise me to see Winston go out and have a 4 interception type game really bringing him back to the crowd of great rookies. Cooper does seem to have had some drop off from what he was doing earlier in the year. I have seen him drop way too many passes. I actually said this to a Raider fan before the draft that if you take Cooper you are definitely getting a talent but be ready for him to have some drops. He is a body catcher and is looking to make a play up the field. That combination usually leads to more drops.

Cooper leads the league in drops. That is not good. His 62% catch rate isn't great in general.

 

[cdumler7]

Cooper leads the league in drops. That is not good. His 62% catch rate isn't great in general.

With Cooper you have to be willing to take the greatness with the mediocrity. There might not be a better route runner in the NFL than Cooper. It is his superior quickness off the LOS that helps him to get such great separation. At the same time like I said Cooper had this problem in college as well in he can lack focus and be looking too quickly to turn the ball up the field which leads to drops. When you throw in I see him not always being a natural hand catcher of the football again letting the ball get into the body leads to a higher percentage of drops. Now this doesn't make him a bad player by any means as he will have a very successful career barring injury but he definitely has some weaknesses to his game that need a major upgrade if he is to get into that discussion of top-3 to 5 players at his position.