Top Three Offensive Rookie of the Year Candidates Through Five Weeks
It’s been a weird year for rookies in the NFL. While the top two picks in April’s draft were offensive players, neither of them has really made a name for themselves yet. Cam Ward has been struggling with a lackluster Titans offense, and Travis Hunter has just been lost in the shuffle with Jacksonville’s wide receiver group, including Brian Thomas, Jr., Dyami Brown, and Parker Washington. After making predictions before the season about this award and now with a month of the season already concluded, it looks like a good time to look at the top candidates for Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Emeka Egbuka
The frontrunner for the OROY Award is Emeka Egbuka. Considering the fact that 12 offensive players were picked before Egbuka, it’s impressive to see what the former Ohio State Buckeye is doing so far. In his first career game, he scored two touchdowns, setting a standard for things to come. Even without Mike Evans, Egbuka has played exceptionally, proving himself as a true number-one receiver in this league. After Tetairoa McMillan appeared to bridge the gap between the top rookie receivers in the league, Egbuka busted it right back open. McMillan added to his impressive season by earning a win at home and expanding his season stats to 24 receptions for 351 receiving yards. At the four o’clock slate, Egbuka put on a masterclass, catching seven balls for 163 yards and a touchdown. The Buccaneers wide receiver now has 25 receptions for 445 yards and five touchdowns, ranking fourth in the league in yards and tied for second in touchdowns with Rome Odunze and George Pickens.
Omarion Hampton
The Chargers’ backfield looked to be in question at the beginning of the year, with Najee Harris taking a third of the offensive snaps in Week Two. Unfortunately for Harris, he suffered a torn Achilles which will sideline him for the rest of the season. Without Harris in the backfield, Omarion Hampton has excelled, running for 128 yards and a score while putting up five catches for 37 yards in last week’s loss to the Giants. The great thing about Hampton is that he can run and catch the ball, leading to him playing 89% of snaps in that aforementioned game at MetLife Stadium. With 314 rushing yards and 450 scrimmage yards on the season, he’s sure to continue as a candidate for OROY in 2025. It should also be noted that Hampton left Sunday’s game with an ankle injury and has yet to be evaluated for said injury.
Ashton Jeanty
After a bit of a slow start to the season, Ashton Jeanty has really shown his talents through the last two games. After a measly two yards per carry in his debut against the Patriots and then 3.1 yards per touch against the Chargers, he needed something to go right. Luckily, he found his footing against Chicago and built on that performance at Indianapolis, averaging 102.5 rushing yards per game, 132 yards from scrimmage, and three total touchdowns while carrying the ball at 5.9 yards per attempt through those two games. The Raiders still aren’t looking great, so who knows if Jeanty can keep up his exceptional play with a mediocre-at-best offensive line.
