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2014 NFL Draft: Odell Beckham Top Rookie Wide Receiver

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By @rickstavig

Odell Beckham, NFL Draft

Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

There were a few rookie wide receivers from the 2014 NFL Draft class who made impacts during their fledgling careers. There were some guys who simply lived up to lofty draft statuses (like Mike Evans, 7th overall by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers), and others who exceeded expectations (like Taylor Gabriel, undrafted free agent signee by the Cleveland Browns. Still, if you have to pick one rookie WR who performed greater than anyone else, and who should be a lock for Offensive Rookie of the Year, it’s Odell Beckham (12th, New York Giants).

Beckham had an historic regular season campaign in 2014, hauling in a ridiculous 91 balls for 1,305 yards and 12 TD’s. And just imagine if Beckham had been healthy during summer camp and played the first four games of the season. You could even argue it was the best rookie season of all time by a wide receiver, with maybe only Randy Moss’s ’98 campaign besting it. Closing out the season he was downright frightening, averaging 10 receptions, 140 receiving yards and 1.5 TD’s per game the last 6 weeks.

What was the most impressive aspect of his season? Out of his 129 targets this year (second most among rookie WR’s), he only dropped 2 balls. On the flip side is Kelvin Benjamin, who led rookie WR’s with 142 targets, but dropped 11 balls. And for comparison’s sake, Calvin Johnson, viewed as arguably the most talented WR in the history of the game (and who had 5 fewer targets than Beckham), had 7 dropped balls.

Who was next up in a distant second as best rookie WR of 2014? The aforementioned Evans enjoyed a very successful campaign this fall, hauling in 68 balls for 1,051 yards and 12 TD’s. Jarvis Landry (63rd, Miami Dolphins), with 84 receptions for 755 yards and 5 TD’s, was also tremendous as a blocker. Martavis Bryant (118th, Pittsburgh Steelers) racked up just 26 catches, but 8 of them were for TD’s and he averaged an absurd 21.1 yards per reception.

Still, Beckham was consistently spectacular and runs away with this acknowledgement. It’s not every year you see a rookie adapt to the NFL level so quickly.

Rick Stavig is an NFL Draft Columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @rickstavig or add him to your network on Google+.

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