NFL Rookie of the Year

Despite Reggie Bush being Reggie Bush, I'm throwing my vote to Hester. What he has done, especially for a rookie, has been nothing short of remarkable. I'm not expecting many votes for Jones-Drew or Mangold, but each of them have drawn serious praise, especially for Mangold picking up the position and playing it so well so quickly. If I left anyone deserving out, please let me know.

 

Vince Young ought to be on this poll, but my vote would have gone to Maurice Jones-Drew anyway. To get 1,000 offensive yards as the backup isn't easy to do. And he's helped a lot on special teams.

 

My bad, Oz. Problem fixed.

 

You beat me to it, MCE, I was planning to post this thread today. It's a tough question. Jones-Drew might be the best player out of this group, but he's really just getting noticed late.

Reggie Bush had all the hype early on and was sporadic, but is getting better every week. I think it may be too little, too late for him, especially with Colston outshining him for much of the year on his own team.

I'm glad you mentioned Mangold. I've only seen a few Jets games and it's obviously hard to quantify center's contributions (which is why he won't get it), but he's played exceptionally well for a rookie OL.

Hester's obviously been electrifying, giving him a chance, but I think Colston is the guy. Over 1,000 yards, five or six touchdowns ... that's the kind of production you don't see out of a whole lot of rookie WRs. I think I read somewhere a while back that since 1990, only five rookie WRs have surpassed 1,000 yards and all were first rounders.

 

Devin Hester.

 

My money is on Hester. He's helped that team in so many ways, despite Rex Grossmen's attempts to sabotage it.

 

DeMeco Ryans ,#2 in total tackles, tough to vote against.

 

Jay Cutler's name should enter this conversation if the Broncos get into the playoffs. Kid looks good. He was clearly better than Leinart on Sunday, and it wouldn't surprise me to see him be the best of this year's rookie QB crop in a couple of years.

 

I don't think Cutler's played enough to warrant serious consideration. He may have a ton of talent, but he just don't have the numbers to compete with everyone else.

 

From Dr. Z this past week ...

"I just saw a statistic that set me off. LB DeMeco Ryans is being called the NFL's total tackles leader. Phony, unofficial stats. No standing nor bearing upon civilized society. I think I mentioned that earlier in the season I got some coaching films from the club and did a three-game study on him. Very raw at that point. Swallowed almost every fake. But gifted with abnormal speed and a real burst, thus able to run down ball carriers all over the field. But please, let's leave the official statistics to the people who have signed up for them."

 

Even though I don't think he will get it, being that he's mainly a returner/ST guy, I've got to vote for Hester. He has made such an impact for the Bears, whether it is giving the team a jumpstart when the offense craps out, or when he drives a stake through the heart of the opposition.

 

VY