In week 1 and week 2, we saw quarterbacks being crowned as the rookie of the week, Alex Smith of the Chicago Bears and Kyle Orton of the San Francisco 49ers. Both of them outvoted other nominees in each week by tallying around 80% of the total votes. In week 3, it is going to be more interesting and competitive since it is confirmed that there will be no QB making the top 5 nominees and no nominee was also nominated in the previous 2 weeks. This week might also be the week for rookie from the defense due to only one rookie from the offensive side of the ball made the list. Without further ado, here are the five nominees for SFL 2005 Week 3 Rookie of the Week.
MLB Jordan Beck (JAX)
12 TKL 1 TFL 0 CTHA
Won 10-6 at Jets
Beck was drafted as the 8th overall pick of the 2005 SFL Draft. The California Polytechnic State University graduate has got quite ideal size and stature for an inside linebacker at 6'2" 233 lbs. He also has good athleticism and power. No wonder he made the top 10 pick in the draft. After average performances in week 1 and week 2, he burst into the scene in week 3 in a defensive battle against the new Jake Plummer and Jets offense. He and Buccaneers safety John Lynch lead the league in total tackles for this week. That's quite an impressive feat for a rookie.
CB Brandon Browner (ARZ)
6 TKL 1 SCK 0 CTHA
Lost 27-38 at Seahawks
The number one overall pick of the 2005 SFL Draft finally made the short list. Truth be told (especially for you, Tyler), he almost made last week's list but I decided not to include him due to his low tackle number and other nominees had a lot more (personally I still think TKL is one of the important stats though in this game of inches). The Oregon State product, who stands at 6'4" 221 lbs., obviously is one in a generation talent that we would find in the draft. Up until the third week, he is probably the only player in the league that has only allowed 1 catch in three games as a cornerback. With that speed and range, we would probably see him making the Pro Bowl in his rookie season barring any injuries.
FS O.J. Atogwe (SEA)
7 TKL 3 DFL 1 CTHA
Won 27-38 vs. Cardinals
Atogwe was drafted 1 pick before the first nominee Jordan Beck, as the 7th overall pick of 2005 SFL Draft. The 6'0" 205 lbs. safety out of Stanford University is probably one of the fastest safeties (if not the fastest) in the league. In his first 3 games as a pro, he played quite well on the Seahawks secondary, especially in week 3, where he helped the Seahawks to get their first win this season by beating their NFC West rival Arizona Cardinals in front of thousands of the 12th Man. The division is now up for grabs for all four teams in it and Atogwe could become the important factor that increase the Seahawks chance.
WR Matt Jones (DEN)
4 REC 81 YDS 1 TD 1 DROP 1 PANCAKE; 2 TKL
Won 34-17 vs. Chiefs
Jones, as the only representative from the offense for this week, was the second overall pick in 2005 SFL Draft. The Arkansas graduate boasts 6'6" 220 lbs. stature with more than enough speed and quickness inside the perimeter. After a slow start in week 1 and week 2 with no touchdown scored, the wide receiver was finally able to record his first career touchdown against the Chiefs, helping the Broncos to win the game in Denver. He also got a good defensive instinct with the 2 tackles he recorded in that game. Playing opposite of Anquan Boldin, he probably has formed one of the most dangerous wide receiving tandems in the league for the Broncos.
CB Corey Webster (CHI)
11 TKL 1 TFL 4 CTHA
Lost 8-13 vs. Bengals
Week in and week out, the Chicago Bears seem to have representative for the rookie of the week. That shows how deep of talents this team have. Webster was drafted as the 13th overall pick in 2005 SFL Draft. Even though he could not avoid the Bears from losing to the Bengals, but he and his teammates on defense, with 11 tackles from the LSU graduate, managed to only allow 13 points scored by the Bengals. With his speed and athleticism, he should be there with other elite corners in the future.
Those are the 5 nominees for SFL 2005 Week 3 Rookie of the Week. As usual, the voting will be open for 1x24 hours. So, please participate here by submitting your vote before 3:30 AM EST tomorrow. If you have any thoughts, comments, or suggestions, please don't hesitate to leave those below. Thanks in advance for your participation.
GO ROOKIE...GO!!!
AWARDEE: MLB Jordan Beck (JAX)
Jacksonville Jaguars middle linebacker Jordan Beck has won the SFL 2005 Rookie of the Week Award for his Week 3 performance against the New York Jets. The MLB got 52% of the votes from the league members, beating Seattle Seahawks FS O.J. Atogwe in the poll. By helping the Jaguars to win with his 12 tackles performance in a defensive battle against the Jets, he deserves to be well recognized. Currently at 3-0, it looks like the Jaguars and their GM are rolling on all cylinders for that 9-wins train especially with Beck anchoring their defense. Good job, Jason!
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