5 Defensive Rookies that will rock the NFL
We as fans have a tendency to always look for the Offensive players that are going to shine in their rookie years, but we can't forget those that affect the opposite side of the ball. Two years ago, we had Joey Bosa miss some time with the Los Angeles Chargers and yet still won the Defensive Rookie Player of the Year. Last year New Orleans cornerback Marshon Lattimore had a highly successful year to be named the DRPOY.
If you look at the list of winners we see many names that have changed the way the Defence is played compared to their offensive winner counterparts. Most of the winners of the DRPOY award have gone on to become the Top players at their position. From players like Von Miller, Luke Kuechly, and Aaron Donald have all won this award and now are the best at their positions.
This year there is another strong group of rookies that can win this award. A lot of them will impact their teams in special ways as previous players did.
Here is the list of the 5 rookie defensive players that will rock the NFL for the 2018 season:
# 5 Jaire Alexander (Green Bay Packers, Cornerback):
Jaire Alexander is coming into a team that does not have the strongest defence in the NFL. Chosen 18th overall in the 2018 NFL Draft, Alexander will bring a lot of bang into a defence that has troubles defending the pass. Mike Pettine heavy blitz themed defence will rely on his cornerbacks to defend the ball as it can get a pretty heavy man on man defence. With a veteran like Tramon Williams and Ha Ha Clinton-Dix on his side, he will benefit from them with the learning curve to solidify himself in the NFL. Alexander has great speed and athleticism. Built like a wide receiver, his ability to get to the ball is unmatched in the 2018 draft class. In college at Louisville he had 22 passes defended, 77 Tackles (58 were solo tackles), and 7 interceptions resisted in three seasons and 31 games there. Alexander also is an explosive returner at Louisville, if Trevor Davis runs into problems don't be surprised to see Alexander to replace him. His closest comparable would be Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie.