Analysis
10/27/21
5 min read
Week 7 Rookie Report: Khalil Herbert was a Late-Round Steal
Whether they are high draft picks, late-round value picks or undrafted free agents, we’ll take a look each week of the NFL season at how NFL rookies are doing. Here’s this week’s report:
Stock Up Offensive Players
QB: Mac Jones - Jones proved to be the best of the rookie QBs on Sunday, as he played a stress-free game in the Patriots blowout win over the Jets. Jones completed 24 of 36 passes for 307 yards and TDs, with a passer rating of 111.7 and a PFF grade of 81.8.
RB: Khalil Herbert - For the second straight week, Herbert played really well filling in for the Bears RB vacancy. He carried the ball 18 times for 100 yards and also caught 5 passes for 33 yards. He finished with an excellent PFF grade of 88.7.
RB: Elijah Mitchell - Mitchell, who has been very solid when he is on the field, put together another good week. He rushed 18 times for 107 yards and a score, good for 5.9 yards per carry and a PFF grade of 79.6.
WR: Ja’Marr Chase - Chase seems to be on this list every week and dominated once again on Sunday. He pulled 8 catches for 201 yards and a TD, earning a PFF grade of 89.2.
TE: Kyle Pitts - Pitts has fully broken out, as he had another great week against the Dolphins. He caught 7 passes for 163 yards, earning him a grade of 93.5.
OL: Liam Eichenberg - Eichenberg has struggled the majority of his career thus far but played well on Sunday. He allowed the second-lowest pressure rate of his career, and lowest since Week 1 at 4.3%. He finished with a PFF grade of 63.1.
Stock Down Offensive Players
QB: Justin Fields - Fields struggled again on Sunday, when he had a hard time taking care of the football. He went 22 of 32 for 184 yards with no touchdowns, 3 interceptions, 2 lost fumbles, had a passer rating of 44.3, and a grade of 36.5.
RB: Chuba Hubbard - Hubbard and the whole Carolina offense really struggled to get going and has for a few weeks in a row. He ran for just 28 yards on 12 carries, finishing with a grade of 57.8.
WR: Amon-Ra St. Brown - St. Brown has played really well of late and looked to be developing into a reliable target for Jared Goff. On Sunday, he did not get involved and was not targeted a single time. He finished with a PFF grade of 48.1.
OL: Royce Newman - Newman, who was a fourth-round selection by the Packers, has played alright to start his career, but had a difficult time in the run and pass game on Sunday. He finished with a grade of just 35.1.
OL: Brady Christensen - Christensen was a third-round pick by the Panthers and has not played very well in his first couple of appearances. Sunday was no different, as he was credited with allowing 7 pressures, finishing with a grade of 62.6.
Stock Up Defensive Players
DL: Jonathan Cooper - Cooper, who was a seventh-round pick by the Broncos, filled in very nicely for Von Miller on Thursday night. He tallied five pressures in the pass rush and finished with a grade of 85.7.
DL: Azeez Ojulari - Ojulari, who has put together a solid rookie year, had a huge day on Sunday. He had 2.5 sacks and had 7 total pressures. He finished with a grade of 80.3.
LB: Nick Bolton - Bolton put together another very solid game, particularly against the run. He totaled 15 tackles, 4 for a loss, and a PFF grade of 62.2.
DB: Patrick Surtain II - Surtain played a great game in coverage on Sunday. He was targeted 6 times and allowed just 1 catch for 1 yard, breaking up 2 passes in the process. He finished with a PFF grade of 62.3.
DB: Eric Stokes - Stokes has been up and down in his play to start his career, but played well on Sunday. He had 4 tackles and a pass breakup and was targeted 5 times, allowing just 2 completions. He finished with a grade of 75.9.
Stock Down Defensive Players
DL: Odafe Oweh - Oweh has been one of the best rookie defenders, but did not play as well on Sunday. He generated 3 pressures but posted his second-lowest pass rush win rate of the season with 8.3%. He finished with a grade of just 52.7.
DL: Joe Tryon-Shoyinka - Tryon-Shoyinka has played well the majority of the season so far, but was quiet on Sunday. He did not generate any pressure on the QB and finished with a grade of just 40.4.
LB: Jamien Sherwood - Sherwood had put together two very good weeks in a row going into his matchup with the Patriots. However, he struggled in both the run and pass games, finishing with just 2 tackles and a grade of 50.4.
DB: Elijah Molden - Molden has been very inconsistent to start his career, but has shown some flashes. On Sunday, he struggled in coverage, allowing 7 catches for 75 yards. He had a PFF grade of 50.4.
DB: Keith Taylor - Taylor, who had been performing really well to start his career, finds himself on the wrong side of this list for the second straight week. He allowed five catches for 66 yards, four of which went for first downs. He finished with a grade of just 43.3.
Week 8 Matchups
Going into Week 8, there are some noteworthy matchups of rookies that will be worth keeping an eye on.
Javonte Williams vs Jamin Davis - Despite fumbling on Thursday, Williams has done a really good job so far. He will look to continue contributing in both the run and pass game. Davis has struggled for the most part but has shown some flashes through the first seven weeks.
Liam Eichenberg vs Gregory Rousseau - Eichenberg had not played very well to start his career, but was exceptional this past week and will look to keep that going. Rousseau has shown flashes of dominance so far and will look to take advantage of this matchup on Sunday.
