Morning Coffee: Stacked NFL rookie class poised to make an immediate impact

We’re just 15 days away from the start of the 2024 NFL regular season, folks.

Two weeks from tomorrow, we’ll be watching the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs begin their title defence against the Baltimore Ravens in a rematch of last year’s AFC Championship.

The Chiefs are sitting at -3 at FanDuel for the opener.

It won’t be long now before we get our first official sweat of the 2024 NFL season.

In the meantime, we’ve already got the CFL and MLB going strong, the PGA Tour playoffs are underway, and the return of NCAA football is about to wreak even more havoc on my sleep schedule.

Then again, I’m already struggling to get enough rest during this prime time for NFL betting and fantasy football prep, with the number of pending fantasy league drafts over the next two weeks in the double digits.

While there’s always a lot to be excited about when it comes to looking ahead to the regular season at this time of the year, there’s one specific NFL storyline that I keep coming back to as we continue to countdown to Week 1.

The 2024 NFL season will feature the most stacked class of Offensive Rookie of the Year candidates that I can remember.

Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams was this year’s first-overall pick and an obvious favourite to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year at FanDuel.

While there’s no doubt in my mind that Williams deserves to be the top choice in the OROY market, there are a handful of first-year players that have the potential to go on to rank among the best in the NFL at their positions sooner rather than later.

This is the Morning Coffee for Wednesday August 21st, 2024.

Stacked NFL Rookie Class Poised To Make An Immediate Impact

The conversation going into the 2024 NFL Draft was focused on the elite offensive talent that would go on to be selected in the first round.

The first 14 picks included six quarterbacks, three wide receivers, one tight end and four offensive linemen.

A defensive player wasn’t selected until the Indianapolis Colts took defensive end Laiatu Latu at 15th overall.

Joe Alt, J.C. Latham, Olu Fashanu, and Taliese Fuaga will all contribute immediately and have the potential to be the anchors of the offensive lines for their respective teams.

They just won’t be in the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year conversation.

The other 10 players that went in the top-14 picks will be.

Let’s start with the quarterbacks.

Williams steps into an ideal situation for a rookie quarterback, surrounding by one of the better sets of skill-position players in the NFC.

D.J. Moore, Keenan Allen, and rookie Rome Odunze is an above-average wide receiver trio.

Williams will also get to play with veteran tight end Cole Kmet and veteran running back D’Andre Swift.

With a unique blend of arm talent and the ability to make highlight-reel plays with his legs, Williams steps into an ideal situation with the potential to put up big numbers in his rookie season.

FanDuel set his over/under at 3500.5 passing yards.

Williams to throw for 4000+ yards is +270.

In an absolutely stacked offensive rookie class, Williams is considered the consensus best pure talent at the game’s most important position.

With a supporting cast and defence that is ready to win now, Williams to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year at +120 is considered an obvious pick here.

Williams isn’t the only rookie QB that will start Week 1.

The Washington Commanders officially named Jayden Daniels their starter earlier this week.

Meanwhile, Denver Broncos QB Bo Nix and New England Patriots QB Drake Maye have both made strong impressions this pre-season.

Neither team has committed to their Week 1 starter.

Daniels is currently the second choice to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year at +600.

Nix is down to +1300 as the fourth choice to win the award.

Maye is now seventh on the list at +3000.

While I believe the hype around Williams as the obvious favourite to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, I will concede that Daniels has the skill set and the help around him to be a potential value play at +600.

I don’t feel the same way about either Nix or Maye.

Meanwhile, this year’s wide receiver class is absolutely stacked with Marvin Harrison Jr., Malik Nabers, and Xavier Worthy all among the top-six choices to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Nabers might very well be the most dynamic of that trio, but he’s also in the worst position of the three as the focal point of the New York Giants offence.

The Giants lost Saquon Barkley and don’t have another alpha skill position player to take attention away from Nabers.

I believe that could leave Nabers vulnerable at times as Daniel Jones leans heavily on him as a rookie.

Harrison becomes the No. 1 option for an Arizona Cardinals’ offence that features Kyler Murray at quarterback.

Harrison has the shortest odds of the top wide receiver trio at +650 to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Nabers is +1500 as the fifth choice in that market.

Worthy is right behind him as the sixth choice at +1900.

I’m not sleeping on Worthy at all as a deep threat in a Patrick Mahomes offence this season.

Worthy has already made a couple of big plays this pre-season and with Hollywood Brown already dealing with an injury, Worthy could get off to a hot start.

Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Ladd McConkey is a little further down the list at +3500 to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Buffalo Bills wide receiver Keon Coleman is +3700.

Then there’s the top tight end in this year’s rookie class – Brock Bowers of the Las Vegas Raiders.

Former NFL tight end and current commentator Greg Olsen has already said, “he might be the best college tight end that I’ve ever really seen.”

While Bowers likely won’t win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year as a +4000 longshot, there’s no doubt that his skill set will translate to him making an immediate impact this season, with the Raiders using him in a variety of different ways beyond his traditional tight end role.

With the potential for as many as four potential rookie starting QBs in Week 1, a deep cast of rookie wide receivers set to see significant snaps right away, four potential anchor offensive linemen, and a tight end that has been called one of the best-ever at the college level, this year’s offensive rookie class is absolutely stacked.

I can’t wait to see what kind of an impact every one of them has in their first year this season.