Even though the Cleveland Browns selected cornerback Greg Newsome in the first round of the 2021 NFL draft, he doesn’t have the best chance in his own Cleveland draft class of winning the defensive rookie of the year honor.
Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, the team’s second-round linebacker, has better odds to win the prestigious honor than Newsome, who was taken 26 slots above him. At BetMGM, Owusu-Koramoah is currently set at +1400 to win the defensive rookie of the year. He’s got the 7th-best odds.
Newsome sits tied for 10th at +2000, the same line as EDGE Azeez Ojulari (Giants) and EDGE Gregory Rousseau (Bills).
It’s odd for a later-round pick to have a better chance at making an immediate impact, but positional value carries some weight here. Just two CBs have won the defensive rookie honor in the last 25 years, but linebackers have captured the award six times in the last 13 seasons. Dallas LB Micah Parsons is the early odds-on favorite to win in 2021.
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