We are now almost a quarter of the way into the 2013 NFL season and already we have seen some huge performances by this year’s rookie class. Highlight reel catches, game-clinching interceptions and so many more great plays have just given us a taste of the future of this league. But while some rookies have fallen down our list there have been some who rise to the occasion and are establishing themselves as future stars of the game we love.
10. Kenbrell Thompkins Wide Receiver, New England Patriots
As the Patriots continue to deal with injuries to their star players they have been looking for a young receiver to step up. While Tom Brady has struggled a bit with his accuracy completing less than 60 percent of his passes entering their matchup against the Falcons, plenty of the blame went on the rookie wide receivers.
In the past two weeks though one man has stepped up and it hasn’t been their second-round pick. Despite going undrafted out of Cincinnati Thompkins has provided the little spark to this passing game that Brady has desperately been looking for. While Thompkins had just 41 receiving yards against the Bucs in Week 3, he came up big with the first two touchdowns of his career. He was a big reason why the Patriots were able to beat Tampa Bay 23-3 and he was Brady’s go-to threat inside the red zone. He carried that momentum over into Sunday night on national television against the Falcons and showed why he was considered by many to be a huge sleeper in the preseason. Thompkins finished the night with six receptions but he made one big play after another.
While a diving touchdown reception on the edge of the end zone would normally stand out, it was his 49-yard jaw-dropping catch that stood out. Despite being absolutely draped in coverage, Thompkins stole the ball from William Moore. It was an absurd leaping catch that really gave the Patriots needed momentum in the game. New England was leading just 7-3 late in the second quarter when Thompkins made the ridiculous catch to move the ball all the way down to the Falcons 32-yard line. Every time you saw the catch on replay you were just astonished at his ability to go up and steal the ball away from Moore. This is the type of game that really helps a rookie wide receiver earn a lot of respect from his quarterback and will help him be looked toward more often in the future. Two big games for Thompkins and now the Patriots are off to a rolling 4-0 start to the season.
9. Kenny Vaccaro Free Safety, New Orleans Saints
The 2013 draft class is already off to a great start and the defensive players have stepped up in a big way early. But it has been the safety position that has really shined early this season and Vaccaro is just another example of a rookie who has stood out.
While drawing praise from your head coach is always important it means a little more when a veteran defensive coordinator like Rob Ryan raves about you almost on a weekly basis. Ryan has a lot of reasons to praise Vaccaro, after all this is the heaviest workload Ryan has ever put on a rookie as a coach. But Vaccaro has earned it with his tremendous play early in the season and has shown his versatility for this defense lining up everywhere on the field. Whether it’s wrapping up the ball carrier and racking up tackles as he did against the Cardinals or making plays in coverage and picking up his first interception in the same game. New Orleans didn’t plan to throw Vaccaro into the fire this early but injuries on defense have forced their hand and put extra pressure on the rookie safety. This is the same Saints defense that was historically bad against the pass last season, now they are allowing less than 200 passing yards per game through the first four games this year. Vaccaro has stepped up to the challenge that Ryan and the Saints presented him with early this year and he is thriving early on.
8. Sheldon Richardson Defensive Tackle, New York Jets
Last week Richardson became one of the jokes of the league for his early celebration that led to a touchdown. He celebrated what he thought was a big stop but instead saw Fred Jackson run right past him. But this week he was the star of a highlight play and it was an example of just how dominant Richardson can be at times.
Richardson absolutely demolished Titans right guard Andy Levitre early in the game, and it would serve as the only bright spot for the Jets the entire game. Richardson just shoved Levitre back and was so quick and powerful off the snap that Levitre lost his balance and fell on his back. Explosiveness is one of the big things Richardson was known for coming out of Missouri and we saw exactly that on this play. Through four games this season we have seen just how much of an athletic freak Richardson is and when paired with Muhammad Wilkerson the two youngsters form a deadly combo on the defensive line. That duo wasn’t enough though in a losing effort as the Jets struggled to stop the Titans passing attack. Richardson finished the day with three tackles to give him 16 on the season along with one and a half sacks. His next battle will come on Monday Night Football against a Falcons offensive line which is depleted by injuries and struggling to protect Matt Ryan. It should present an excellent opportunity for Richardson to wreak havoc on the national stage and make his early case for defensive rookie of the year.
7. Star Lotulelei Nose Tackle, Carolina Panthers
How does a player who was on a bye week move up into the top ten, thanks to some time spent watching him on coaches film and just the type of impact the rookie has had for the Panthers. Carolina has long needed a nose tackle to anchor their defensive line and they hoped Lotulelei would give them just that when they selected him with the 14th overall pick. But just three games into the 2013 season he has surpassed all expectations coaches could have had for him.
Lotulelei was praised as a run-stopper coming into the draft and he has done exactly that. He has played against the Seahawks, Bills and Giants taking on two of the best running attacks in the NFL. Lotulelei played a huge role in clogging the middle and holding the Seahawks to just 70 rushing yards. The following week against Buffalo while Carolina struggled against the run, we saw Lotulelei make strides as a pass-rusher. He brought inside pressure on E.J. Manuel forcing him into some bad throws and was credited with three hits on the quarterback. The following week against the Giants we once again saw Lotulelei develop as a pass rusher and he recorded his first career sack. Lotulelei has already drawn the praise of coaches and teammates including defensive end Greg Hardy who called him a “superstar”.
6. Eric Reid Free Safety, San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers were facing an uphill battle heading into their Thursday night football battle on the road against the St. Louis Rams. Dealing with injuries on offense things only got worse for the 1-2 team when they had to send Aldon Smith to rehab and Patrick Willis had to sit out. San Francisco needed a boost from their defense if they wanted to avoid a 1-3 start and Reid provided them exactly that.
It wasn’t a turnover or big play that made Reid stand out on the national stage, but just a great effort against the Rams running game and playing in coverage. While Reid’s name may not show up big in the box score just take a look at how the Rams did running the football and look at Jared Cook. St. Louis not only struggled to get its running game going they couldn’t even match their eighteen rushing yards with their nineteen carries. Meanwhile Cook failed to crack the 50-yard mark despite being targeted nine times on the night. Reid provided a spark for the 49ers by playing the free safety position about as well as you could ask for out of your starter. He gave the 49ers the spark they needed on defense and helped quiet the Rams offense and give the 49ers the victory.
5. Giovani Bernard Running Back, Cincinnati Bengals
We are starting to see the ide turn in Cincinnati and the ending of one era while the beginning of another rolls in. After fans continuously have called for Bernard to start getting more touches over BenJarvus Green-Ellis. It appears the fans plea was answered or Jay Gruden realized just how talented Bernard is.
Bernard was finally set free in the Bengals offense and made a focal point of their attack. He led the team in carries with ten and added six receptions on seven targets. Unfortunately, the game they finally set him free came against a tough Browns defense and that played a big part in Bernard’s low statistics. While Bernard finished the game with 10 carries he managed just 37 rushing yards on the day for a mediocre 3.7 yards per carry. Too often he would get stuffed before he could even make it to the line of scrimmage that cut even more into his yardage total. When the running game stopped working, Cincinnati made adjustments and began to use him in the passing attack. He caught six receptions but for just 38 yards with his largest play coming on a 10-yard reception. Cincinnati just couldn’t get its offense gaining any momentum against the Browns and that’s a big reason why they walked off the field in a 13-6 loss. The only positive to take away from this game is that they are getting Bernard the ball more often and making him their top running back, which should help their offense become harder to stop as the season progresses.
4. DeAndre Hopkins Wide Receiver, Houston Texans
We knew this was going to be a tough battle for Hopkins and it was exactly that. In a game where the Texans took an early lead only to give the game away at the end, very few Texans impressed on Sunday. But in a close game Hopkins had a chance to come through and help Houston win but he just couldn’t come through.
Hopkins was matched up for most of the game with Seattle Seahawks cornerback Brandon Browner who was returning from an injury. Browner didn’t show any lingering effects from his hamstring injury and played lockdown defense on Hopkins. It was a quiet day for Hopkins and Schaub recognized he wasn’t getting open and looked to his other targets. Hopkins was targeted just three times on Sunday while Andre Johnson and Owen Daniels were targeted 12 and 11 times respectively. Both Johnson and Daniels had big games, with Johnson catching nine passes for 110 yards and Daniels six receptions for 72 yards. Hopkins caught just two of his three targets and was held to 27 receiving yards. The Seahawks secondary was surprisingly bad this week but even as they struggled Hopkins just couldn’t get separate from Browner.
3. Kyle Long Offensive Guard, Chicago Bears
After an outstanding performance last week against the Pittsburgh Steelers and it helped push him into the top spot of the rookie rankings. But for all the progress he made last week and in the preseason, it was an ugly start for him this week against the Lions.
While Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh gets a lot of criticism for being a dirty player and taking cheap shots, he is still one of the best defensive linemen in football. We knew this would be a tough battle for Long and reality came back this week showing he is still a rookie. Suh dominated all game long, bringing inside pressure and never letting Jay Cutler settle in. Long gave up two sacks to Suh including one that resulted in a forced fumble which was recovered by Nick Fairley and returned for a touchdown. Long also drew a penalty for illegal use of the hands against Suh. The Bears would go on to lose their first game of the season and plenty of blame has to go on the offensive line including Long. He just has to learn from his mistakes and improve for next week’s game against the New Orleans Saints.
2. Tyrann Mathieu Free Safety, Arizona Cardinals
The 2013 rookie class really has become the story about defensive players who have stepped up for their teams. What makes this group even more exciting is that the top two rookies have been players drafted after the first round. Coming in at the second spot this week is Mathieu and he continue to slowly push his way up and is now the runner-up.
For the first time, Mathieu was in the starting lineup for the Cardinals this week while Rashad Johnson missed the game recovering from his gruesome finger injury. Mathieu took advantage of his opportunity on Sunday and gave the Cardinals a reason to possibly play it safe with Johnson and bring him back slowly. Mathieu showed a different side to him against the Buccaneers and brought some serious pressure on Tampa Bay quarterback Mike Glennon. Mathieu picked up six tackles on the day and played a role in limiting Doug Martin to just 45 rushing yards on 27 carries. While he didn’t force a turnover this week his ability to bring pressure off the blitz and help shut down one of the NFL’s best running back certainly stood out on Sunday. Mathieu will need to a lot more if he wants to surpass Alonso, but he already has done more than anyone could have expected this time last year.
1. Kiko Alonso Middle Linebacker, Buffalo Bills
Another week and another outstanding performance from the former Oregon Duck. The Bills dealt with a lot of questions when they drafted Alonso ahead of fellow middle linebacker Arthur Brown but now the Bills are laughing at everyone else.
There has not been a better rookie this year than Alonso and while the Bills have played decent football and now are 2-2 on the season, it hasn’t been their rookie quarterback who has helped lead this team to victory. For the third week in a row, Alonso has shown his incredible instincts and ability to make a big play by getting an interception. After recording an interception in each of the past two games, Alonso decided to pick off Joe Flacco twice this week. While the first interception came on a bad throw where he jumped the pass to Marlon Brown it wasn’t his biggest play of the day. He delivered the dagger late in the fourth quarter on a tipped pass when he dove for the ball and kept it off the ground and tucked it away, resulting in the clinching interception. He also played a big role in another of Flacco’s five interceptions by bringing pressure on the inside blitz and forcing Flacco to throw another interception. Just for good measure he also deflected two passes and really became Flacco’s nightmare. Alonso is clearly the favorite to be defensive rookie of the year and is making a case to be rookie of the year.