NFL Futures Friday: Kenny Pickett, Breece Hall Early Leaders for Offensive Rookie of the Year
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Happy Friday, NFL fans! I’m excited to keep this series going as I deliver some NFL futures every Friday. Today, we’re taking a look at the Offensive Rooke of the Year market, and I’ll highlight a couple of my favorite values for the award. We’re still a few months away from the start of the season, so don’t get too crazy with these, but sprinkling a unit on a couple of players for the Rookie of the Year races is always fun. Let’s dive in.
QB Kenny Pickett – Pittsburgh Steelers ()
Three of the last six winners of the Offensive Rookie of the Year award have been quarterbacks including Dak Prescott, Kyler Murray, and Justin Herbert. The path for Kenny Pickett is relatively simple. First, he needs to beat out Mitchell Trubisky for the starting job, which should be doable given Trubisky’s recent struggles. Next, he’ll need to put together solid stats, which should also be doable given the talent in the offense. He has a great group of skill position players supporting him in Najee Harris, Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool, George Pickens, and Pat Freiermuth. Finally, the Steelers will need to finish at or above .500, which they have done every year with Mike Tomlin. If all of those things happen for Kenny Pickett, he has a great chance to win this award.
WR Drake London – Atlanta Falcons ()
If you want to bet on the player who is most likely to lead this rookie receiver class in targets this season, Drake London should be your target. A co-favorite with Kenny Pickett for the award, London finds himself in an offense devoid of pass-catching talent outside of Kyle Pitts as he’ll be competing with Olamide Zaccheaus, Bryan Edwards, Auden Tate, and Damiere Byrd for targets at receiver. London’s ankle injury shouldn’t significantly hold him back this season, and the Falcons will give him all of the work he can handle this year. As a talented contested-catch receiver who can also gain separation through agility and quickness, London is a great talent who could have a massive season. While the quarterback situation isn’t ideal, it should be enough to get London the ball early and often.
RB Breece Hall – New York Jets ()
My favorite pick for the Offensive Rookie of the Year award right now is Breece Hall, and I’m surprised his odds aren’t shorter. At 9-1 odds on some books, the value is far greater than it should be for Hall. There seems to be concern over the presence of Michael Carter and Tevin Coleman in the backfield, but Hall will have the chance to earn a three-down role this season. He’s an elite athlete with a 9.96 Relative Athletic Score, the seventh-best grade of any running back since 1987. He produced at an elite level with over 3,000 yards and 41 touchdowns in two seasons. Hall also plays behind a constantly improving offensive line that added powerful run-blocker Laken Tomlinson to its exciting young corps. Hall is my current pick to win the award straight up, and getting 9-1 value on him makes him by far my favorite bet right now.