In one of the closest races, with one of the most obscure finishes in NFL history, Jets wideout Garrett Wilson won Offensive Rookie of the Year over Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker in 2022 despite the Seattle ball-carrier receiving more first-place votes than the Gang Green pass-catcher.
Either way, both were the most dynamic first-year pros in football a season ago.
Ja’Marr Chase ran away with Offensive Rookie of the Year award in 2021. Justin Herbert and Justin Jefferson battled for the NFL OROY in 2020, with the electric Chargers passer ultimately winning in large part because he set the NFL record for touchdown passes thrown by a rookie.
Let’s rank the likely Offensive Rookie of the Year candidates for the 2023 season.
Before I begin, I felt compelled to make the proclamation that I’ve smartened up with these rankings. Only five of the last 21 Offensive Rookie of the Year winners were not picked in the first round of the draft. It’s been six consecutive years in which the OROY was a first-round pick. Before that, Alvin Kamara and Dak Prescott — who were selected in third and fourth rounds, respectively — took home the trophy in back-to-back seasons (2016 and 2017). Also, neither an offensive lineman nor a tight end has ever won the award.
While a small, average athlete, Addison does have uncanny ability to get open at all levels of the field — particularly underneath and at the intermediate level — and he’s rather nifty after the catch. He won the Biletnikoff as a 19-year-old in 2021 when he caught 100 passes for nearly 1,600 yards from Kenny Pickett at Pitt. In 2020, I was far, far too low on Justin Jefferson. For as much I learned my lesson on his exquisitely complete game, his superstar presence is the reason Addison is lower on the list than you probably expected.
Jefferson saw 184 targets and led the NFL in catches and receiving yards in 2022. Of course,…
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