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A First Round Reflection

For the class of 2012, their first season is in the books. It's time for us to look back at the rookie season and how the first rounders performed.

1.1 - MLB Luke Kuechly - Lions - Kuechly started the season in a blaze of glory with 17 tackles (3 TFL) in his first 2 games but a shoulder injury in week 3 put the brakes on him. Kuechly would not return until week 10 but he would put up 11 tackles against the Colts in week 12 as well as 22 tackles (5 TFL) and 2 forced fumbles in a 3-week stretch against NFC North rivals. Kuechly has shown he has all the skills you would expect of a first overall pick and given a full season will easily crack the 100 tackle mark.

1.2 - CB Casey Hayward - Titans - Out of the door, we will say that Hayward has future superstar written all over him. However, his rookie season was not great. A high tackle count combined with just one interception and a low deflection count indicates that the player was regularly beaten by receivers. The upside though is that Hayward only needs to build his game knowledge before he is going to be swinging those numbers in the opposite direction.

1.3 - WR Alshon Jeffery - Ravens - Jeffery didn't set the world on fire but also wasn't (to be fair, there was only one rookie receiver who did), but amongst rookies he was equal 2nd in touchdowns and 5th in yards. Similar to Hayward, Jeffery has all the right parts to become an absolute superstar and a solid start to his career does not hurt.

1.4 - CB Stephon Gilmore - Chargers - Gilmore was obviously given a depth role in his rookie season and broken ribs in week 12 curtailed the rest of his season. Gilmore had been solid if not spectacular and his season had a similar form to other rookie corners. While the lack of game time in the last third of the season hampered him slightly, we doubt Gilmore will be a background actor in the league for long.

1.5 - WR Josh Gordon - Titans - Gordon was the player from the top of the draft. Kuechly was doing everything right to be a league leader in his rookie season until injury took away over a third of his season. But Gordon exploded onto the scene in a way every GM in the league wants their rookie to. Gordon finished 3rd in the league for yards and 2nd for touchdowns. General managers would be happy with that result from an established receiver, let alone one who was only playing their first season. Why do these buggers keep turning up in the AFC South?!?

1.6 - MLB Dont'a Hightower - Titans - Compared to Gordon, Hightower was positively a wall flower in his rookie season. It looks like he was played behind Leon Williams which is not surprising given Williams' credentials going into the season. Not an unusual strategy for a rookie and Hightower's starting awareness and age made it a viable strategy for the Titans. Expect to see a lot more from him in 2013.

1.7 - OT Matt Kalil - Panthers - It is always a tough gig for a rookie tackle to begin their career on the strong side with a lot of general managers willing to sacrifice some career awareness to put them on the weak side for a few seasons before throwing them to the lions. The Panthers went straight in and Kalil did not disgrace himself. In fact, in a season where some of the league's experienced right tackles were credited with more than 10 sacks allowed, Kalil keeping that count to just 7 is a much bigger achievement to measure against than the 60 pancakes made.

1.8 - QB Andrew Luck - Saints - Luck may have been picked by the Saints but he only played 2 games with the team before being traded mid-season to the Steelers. At the Steelers, he got plenty of game time and put up rookie numbers that most teams would expect from a new signal caller. A week 14 QB rating of 115.0 gives a glimpse into what Lucky could potentially produce in the future.

1.9 - QB Chandler Harnish - Broncos - While Harnish spent some games on the bench for the Broncos, he did play the majority of the season for the team. What was a solid looking performance for the rookie through to week 13, including a QB rating of 116.8 in that game, fell apart in the final four weeks where Harnish made 0 touchdowns and threw 6 picks. But with one of the best awarenesses in the rookie class going into 2013, those four weeks of rubbish should hopefully be a faint memory quickly.

1.10 - OT Lamar Holmes - Bills - Holmes unfortunately struggled a bit playing on the weak side for the Bills which is likely a result of a fairly raw blocking skillset for a top 10 pick. While 5 sacks allows is a respectable number for a rookie at left tackle, the low pancake number is a small concern. The benefit for Holmes is that the only direction is up and as his blocking skills become elite, that ratio is sure to change.

1.11 - QB Kirk Cousins - Buccaneers - As all the other teams that picked quarterbacks in the first round of the 2012 draft wondered what GM Bryan Mellon was huffing while coming up with gameplans, Cousins was showing that a rookie QB could be successful in this league. Cousins finished just shy of 4,000 yards with 32 touchdown passes and a season QB rating of 88.6. Most established starting quarterbacks would be happy with that level of QB rating on a season so whatever Bryan was doing, hopefully he remembers to keep the same strategy for Cousins in the 2013 season.

1.12 - CB Morris Claiborne - Bengals - The Bengals have given Claiborne the save trip into the league, lining the rookie up at the nickel and dime positions across the season and his stats reflect that. This is a perfectly legitimate way to grow a corner. So he neither exceeded or failed in this role. We can only see what his future will hold in the seasons to come.

1.13 - TE Coby Fleener - 49ers - While Fleener was an unusual selection this high in the draft, he put in a excellent rookie performance for the 49ers and finished 13th in yards across the entire league for tight ends. He also made 5 touchdown receptions. This is a pretty impressive start for a tight end in the league, which also included 34 pancakes. An excellent base for him to build a productive career on.

1.14 - QB Brock Osweiler - Texans - A sluggish start where he had only thrown 2 touchdowns across the first 11 weeks to laying down 13 touchdowns in the final 6 weeks. That turn around in performance was not enough to save him from a stock standard and dreary rookie campaign for a quarterback.

1.15 - OLB Melvin Ingram - Titans - Ingram is the other first round pick for the Titans who put in a stellar first year performance. 56 tackles, 10 tackles-for-loss, 11 sacks, a forced fumble and two interceptions is a stat line a lot of people would like their long standing linebackers to provide. It can only get (annoyingly) better.

1.16 - OT Riley Reiff - Cowboys - A pretty good rookie campaign for Reiff who allowed a respectable 6 sacks at left tackle but also put down 74 pancakes. This is more impressive given his rather raw abilities as a run blocker. A solid first run and things will get better.

1.17 - CB Josh Norman - Jaguars - Norman did not get a lot of game time for the Jaguars in his rookie campaign. He played in most games but his stats suggest a season at the deeper end of the corner depth. That being said, given his probably limited game time, he still recorded an interception and recovered a fumble. For him to turn into the value he was drafted at, he is going to need more playing time to progress otherwise he is at risk of becoming a physically gifted player who fails to meet expectations.

1.18 - CB Josh Robinson - Seahawks - Robinson became the nickel corner for the Seahawks in his rookie season and put up a respectable first season of statistics, including a pick, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Similar to Norman picked before him, Robinson will need to start getting more game time or a mentor on the roster to help him grow into his potential.

1.19 - TE Michael Egnew - Lions - Any rookie tight end that puts up over 600 yards receiving is a success in our books. Combine that with 6 touchdown receptions and 48 record pancakes, we would say that Egnew outshone the earlier Fleener selection, though both players have shown they can become excellent players at their positions.

1.20 - DE Malick Jackson - Broncos - It's a long road at left defensive end for players but Jackson put in a solid rookie season at that position to grow on. Very similar in statistics to Robert Quinn from the 2011 draft, we can expect good things from Jackson in the 2013 season.

1.21 - CB Dre Kirkpatrick - Redskins - Kirpatrick, similar to Robinson and Claiborne, got the soft introduction to the SFL. Playing lower on the depth chart, Kirkpatrick did not have a season to write home about with no turnovers to his name. However, with his physical improvements and a strong fundamental understanding of the game, is ready to push to become the next generation of corners for Washington.

1.22 - OLB Bobby Wagner - Panthers - An excellent season for a rookie playing out of the left outside linebacker. Made up for his lack of sacks over the season with 2 forced fumbles, 3 fumble recoveries and an interception. His athleticism will make him a menace in the passing zone and running lanes for seasons to come.

1.23 - HB Doug Martin - Patriots - With over 1,200 yards rushing and 8 touchdowns to his name, you couldn't ask much more from a rookie running back except to work on increasing his yards-per-carry. Despite that, he did average over 4ypc, which meets the criteria of three running plays on average would net a first down.

1.24 - WR Brian Quick - Texans - Paired with a rookie QB, Quick did a respectable if not spectacular job in his rookie season. Possesses all the attributes to be fantastic but we will have to wait and see if 2013 can get him his first 1,000 yard season.

1.25 - DE Derek Wolfe - Buccaneers - Another rookie left end that acquitted themselves in their first season quite well. We're still yet to see a Kevin Vanden Bosch-style rookie season (and we may never again) but Wolfe finished with 4 tackles-for-loss and 6 sacks on the season. Not too shabby.

1.26 - SS Mark Barron - Raiders - Another rookie that performed beyond expectations. Barron had a fantastic rookie season, pairing his 70 tackles with a fumble recovery and 3 interceptions. Turnovers are gold and if your strong safety is creating them, its an added bonus to the team.

1.27 - DT Kendall Reyes - Packers - Absolutely solid season for Reyes as a starting DT on the Packers and the team will expect more of the same from him. Got his tackles, sacks and even managed to put a big ol' hand in the way of a pass enough to get credited the deflection. A player with his physical attributes and growing experience will be a long term fixture for the Packers team.

1.28 - HB David Wilson - Falcons - After a blistering start to the season, including 4 games with over 7 yards per carry, Wilson's production began to drop off in week 7 to the point that when an interim general manager stepped in Wilson lost his on field time. Wilson also took no carries in the playoffs on a Super Bowl team. It is expected with new GM Garth Pearce, Wilson's star should rise again.

1.29 - DT Fletcher Cox - Giants - Similar to Reyes, Cox had a solid if not spectacular rookie campaign. The Giants will be looking for Cox to get some sacks in his sophmore season but he definitely has the tools to make it happen.

1.30 - WR Tommy Streeter - Vikings - Very limited gametime for Streeter in his rookie season. He scored two touchdowns in the week 1 game against the Cowboys but after breaking his ribs against the Texans in week 5 did not suit up again for the team until week 16. Given the Vikings playing personnel in front of Streeter for the 2012 season, it was not expected he would have gotten a starting role immediately.

1.31 - MLB Vontaze Burfict - Bills - Got limited gametime in Buffalo for his first season as the team eases him into the key middle linebacker role. Despite that limitation, managed to force a fumble and recover a fumble. Given his toolsets as a rookie and their growth as a sophmore, we expect Burfict to become more prominent in 2013 and subsequent seasons.

1.32 - CB Trumaine Johnson - Bears - Johnson put in a solid season and while he did not finish with an interception, he does have one turnover credited to his name with a forced fumble. It is expected Johnson will get more game time in the coming seasons as the current Bears personnel have their contracts expire and start to regress.

A Quick Summary

In summary, I do not believe any first round pick had a truely horrible rookie season. With the exception of Kirk Cousins, the other rookie quarterbacks pretty much performed exactly how rookie quarterbacks do. Noone slipped into truely horrible QB rating status from this round. There were some exceptional standouts: WR Josh Gordon and QB Kirk Cousins are prime examples and HB Doug Martin close behind.

A few players need game time to kick start their progression otherwise they face a future of excellent physical attributes gimped by bad game awareness, but it is a legitimate strategy for younger players to player deeper on the depth chart in their first season or two. But with regression now a hard ceiling at 30, every year they are having limited gametime and thus limited potential to earn progression points can have longer term impact on their viability.

That being said: no rookie is unrecoverable from this point and no first round pick truely stunk up their first season.