The NFL Rookie of the Year Award has been won by Quarterbacks for the past two years in a row. Cam Newton of the Carolina Panthers won it in 2011 and Sam Bradford of the St. Louis Rams won it in 2010. The Rookie of the Year Award for 2012 looks like it will go to another young quarterback …. but which one?
Rookie Quarterback Russell Wilson completed 23 of 37 passes for 293 yards including a touchdown pass to Golden Tate late in the game followed by a 13 yard toss to Sidney Rice in overtime to give the Seahawks a dramatic 23-17 win over the Bears. Wilson also ran for 71 yards as he increased his standing in the eyes of fans and commentators alike. Not so bad for a guy hired as a backup who was not even supposed to start much this season. Coach Pete Carroll must have seen something special in the 3rd round draft pick from the University of Wisconsin.
Former Stanford All American Andrew Luck is having a stellar year. Who can forget his first NFL pass going for a touchdown? What a great way to start off a carrear. The Indianapolis Colts had a terrible year in 2011 after losing the services of Payton Manning. Ending up at the bottom of the NFL must have been very difficult for the ex super bowl champions but, it did get them the very first draft pick of the 2012 season. They lucked out and got Andrew Luck. The amazing turn around by the Colts this year can mostly be traced right back to Luck himself as he has led his team to a very respectable 8-4 season.
The Colts are playoff bound.
The Washington Redskins also did not have a very good year in 2011. They ended up with the second round draft pick of 2012 and that turned out to be a young man from Baylor named Robert Griffin III aka RGIII. Like Luck with the Colts, Griffin has helped his team to climb out of the basement of the NFL and actually find themselves as potential playoff teams in 2012. RGIII has only thrown 4 interceptions in 2012….amazing for a rookie. On Monday night he eclipsed Cam Newton for the most rushing yards by a rookie quarterback. With four games to go and his total now standing at 714 yards rushing, Griffin is 325 yards away from breaking the single season rushing mark for any NFL quarterback!
May the best rookie win!
