New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley took the league by storm in 2018, eclipsing 2,000 yards from scrimmage, 1,300 yards on the ground and a combined 15 touchdowns en route to the AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award.
Barkley was far and away the most productive overall rookie in 2018 and arguably one of the Giants’ greatest draft picks of all-time despite just one year under his belt. But in the eyes of NFL.com’s Adam Schein, Barkley wasn’t the best rookie or even the best player drafted.
In breaking down the best draft pick of the last nine year, Schein pegged Indianapolis Colts offensive lineman Quenton Nelson as the superior of the two.
How about this class? Consider that I voted for Nelson, Giants running back Saquon Barkley (No. 2 overall), Chargers safety Derwin James (No. 17 overall), Cowboys linebacker Leighton Vander Esch (No. 19 overall) and Colts linebacker Darius Leonard (Round 2, No. 36 overall) to be first-team All-Pros — as rookies! Nelson, James and Leonard won the honor, while Leonard was also the Defensive Rookie of the Year. Meanwhile, Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield (No. 1 overall) could’ve easily been Offensive Rookie of the Year instead of Barkley. And I still think the other quarterbacks selected in the first round — the Jets’ Sam Darnold (No. 3 overall), the Bills’ Josh Allen (No. 7), the Ravens’ Lamar Jackson (No. 32) and No. 10 overall choice Josh Rosen (now with the Dolphins but drafted by the Cardinals) — have greatness attached.
But here’s my early prediction for Nelson: He’ll be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. And I’m not just overreacting to a rookie year in which he gave Colts QB Andrew Luck time; this is consistent with a prediction for him that a GM gave me when Nelson was coming out of Notre Dame. It’s only been a year, but Nelson has shown he has the physical and mental tools to become one of the best offensive guards to ever play in the NFL. What a steal by GM Chris Ballard, nabbing a building block like that after five other players had already come off the board.
Nelson is the real deal and I don’t think anyone would deny that, but in terms of value brought to a team, no rookie did more than Barkley did for the Giants. It wasn’t even close.
It’s rare that Barkley gets disrespected, and even this is somewhat flimsy, but you can bet that if he gets wind of Schein’s analysis, it will only motivate him to be even better in 2019 — something that’s hard to believe given just how dominant he was on a play-by-play basis a year ago.
