The finalists for the AP NFL annual awards were revealed on Thursday, and that included the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year award.
Unfortunately, Bucs RB Bucky Irving didn't find his name among the finalists. And that's a shame because he more than deserved to be there.
The finalists were Raiders TE Brock Bowers, Commanders QB Jayden Daniels, Broncos QB Bo Nix, Giants WR Malik Nabers, and Jaguars WR Brian Thomas, Jr.
And yes, that entire group of players were all 2024 first round draft picks by their respective teams. It does seem as though high-end draft picks who have solid seasons tend to get the benefit of the doubt for this award. Irving was taken in the fourth round by the Bucs with the 125th overall pick.
However, Irving's rise to one of the best rookies in 2024 was from a far different place beyond just their respective draft positions. Irving was coming into a far different situation than the aforementioned players. The Bucs had arguably the best WR duo in the NFL in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. The running game the previous two years had been abysmal, finishing last in the NFL in 2022 and 2023 in total rushing yards and yards per attempt. Oh, and the incumbent starter, Rachaad White, was coming off a breakout season in 2023 with 1539 scrimmage yards - 990 rushing and 549 receiving.
That's quite the situation to enter as a rookie and put forth tremendous numbers, but Irving managed to put up numbers worth of being a finalist for the rookie of the year award. He finished with 1514 scrimmage yards (1122 rushing on 207 carries (5.4 ypc), 392 receiving on 47 catches) and 8 touchdowns in the regular season.
By comparison, Bowers, Thomas, and Nabers all entered the season as the focal points of their respective passing attacks. They were on bad teams with fewer weapons on offense who were targeted an absurd number of throughout the season. Nabers drew 170 targets, Bowers 153, and Thomas 133.
Credit to the finalists for their positions. They still went out and produced regardless of the huge opportunities they inherited. However, it would have been nice to see Irving rewarded for the road he paved for himself to stardom in his first season.
