At the NFL Honors on Saturday night, the eve of Super Bowl LIV, the AP shocked the football world by naming Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray as the 2019 Offensive Rookie of the Year. Doing so snubbed Tennessee Titans receiver A.J. Brown, Oakland Raiders running back Josh Jacobs, and Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew in the process.
Brown even tweeted “bullshit” after the award was announced. He’d later delete the tweet and apologize for it, but I gotta say – I share the sentiment. I would’ve argued that Murray was at best the 4th best rookie on offense in 2019, and I’ll listen to arguments for Deebo Samuel, Terry McLaurin, D.K. Metcalf, and Miles Sanders over Murray, too.
Kyler Murray has been named AP Offensive Rookie of the Year.
— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) February 1, 2020
Congratulations @K1!
: #NFLHonors | 6pm MST on FOX pic.twitter.com/nqo6bU269H
I don’t want to disrespect Murray too much – I genuinely think this dude is going to be a solid NFL quarterback, and he made the Cardinals exciting again. But, there’s no way in hell you’ll get me to concede that he deserved this award.
He finished the season with 3,722 passing yards, 20 passing touchdowns, 12 interceptions, and a passer rating of 87.4. The Cardinals were 5-10-1 with Murray at the helm.
Daniel Jones and Minshew BOTH had more touchdown passes than Murray with 24 and 21 respectively. While Jones went just 3-10 as the starter for the New York Giants, Minshew’s Jags actually won more games (six) and lost fewer (eight) than Murray. It’s also worth noting that the Jags were 0-2 in games without Minshew. Jones and Minshew both also had a higher passer rating than Murray.
And, those are just the quarterbacks.
When you look at what Brown did for the Titans offense, it’s incredible. He gave them a legitimate threat at wide receiver unlike the Titans have ever had before. The offense had an added dimension because of him. Plus, he led all rookies with 1,051 receiving yards. His eight touchdowns were tied with Giants WR Darius Slayton for the most among rookies. 463 of his yards came after contact (2nd to Samuel among rookies). His 20.2 yards per catch were 2nd in the entire NFL (to Chargers WR Mike Williams‘ 20.4) and 1st among rookies. I just don’t know how you ignore that kind of production and the impact Brown had for his team. It’s wild.
If not Brown, it should’ve been Jacobs. His 1,150 rushing yards was 8th in the NFL, but like Brown, the impact he had on his team’s offense was undeniable. I actually thought Jacobs should’ve gotten a little more MVP love for just what he did for the Raiders offense.
The bias towards quarterbacks in virtually every major award may have never been more evident than with this one. Maybe the AP didn’t watch enough Titans or Raiders. I don’t know…but one thing I do….
It’s bullshit.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD and #BeBetter. “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
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