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Odell Beckham Jr. the Clear Choice For NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year

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By @mturnerny

Odell Beckham Jr. Rookie of the Year

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Everyone knew it was destined to happen, it just needed to be official: New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. has won the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award. Don’t get me wrong, there were plenty of impressive rookies this season, from Teddy Bridgewater and Sammy Watkins, to fellow RoY finalists Zack Martin and Mike Evans. Beckham was just that impressive that this really never seemed like much of a competition.

By the way his season started, no one would have seen this coming. A hamstring injury kept Beckham on the sidelines for most of camp and through the first four games of the season. And that, in fact, may have helped his case — if it needed any help, that is. In only 12 games, Beckham posted 91 receptions, 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns. If he maintained that pace over the course of a full 16 games, the receptions and yards would be rookie records.

Of course his stats are absolutely mind-blowing, including his NFL-leading 108.8 yards per game, but it was the manner in which he compiled his stats that really elevated him to a new level. Beckham has a great combination of speed, jumping and route-running that far more often than not left him yards past the nearest defender. And on the rare occasion when a defender was making a play on the ball as well, Beckham’s incredible hands led him to come up with the reception very often.

Then there was “the catch.” Yes, that catch. In Week 12 against the Dallas Cowboys, Beckham hauled in a bomb from Eli Manning — while being fouled — with only three fingers for a touchdown. It immediately became one of the greatest catches in the history of the sport, and it also became the moment when, on a national stage, people began to take Beckham as a very serious threat.

With Victor Cruz out with an injury, Beckham didn’t have much competition on the Giants’ roster for Manning’s No.1 target, and the two quickly became close. Even with the opposing defense knowing Manning was throwing to Beckham on almost every important down, there was still no stopping him. Thus, Beckham was the clear choice for RoY. He was the ideal culmination of a smart, technical football, and media-friendly Top-10, type of receiver.

Like Beckham did so often on the field this season, during the voting he clearly scored above and beyond the rest of the competition.

Matt Turner is a New York Mets Writer for www.RantSports.com. “Like” him on Facebook, follow him on Twitter @MTurnerNY, or add him to your network on LinkedIn or Google.

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