Most Entertaining Rookies Through Week 2

We are now two weeks through the NFL season, and to say it's been exciting would be an insult to that very word.

There have been a significant number of injuries thrown at some of the league's biggest stars. Robert Griffin III, A.J. Green, DeSean Jackson and Jamaal Charles are just a few names that have been bitten by the cruel fangs of the injury bug.

The league is always transitioning, searching for new stars to come in and take their respective places on center stage. Judging by what we've seen so far, the rookie class of 2014 looks like it has a bunch of guys ready to soak up that limelight.

In this slideshow, we'll take a peak at some of the most entertaining rookies through Week 2. We're talking running backs, wide receivers, pass-rushers and more. The names on this list are quickly becoming familiar ones in living rooms across the country.

Are you ready? Let's go. Here are eight compelling rookies currently during their thing.

Brandin Cooks

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New Orleans Saints wide receiver Brandin Cooks is flat out electrifying. You can't argue with that.

Joining the already explosive Saints aerial attack, Cooks has developed a nice chemistry with quarterback Drew Brees. He's been targeted 14 times in two games. That number is good enough to rank him No. 2 in targets behind only the human touchdown machine, Jimmy Graham.

Cooks has converted 10 of those targets for 94 yards and a touchdown. But catching passes isn't the only thing he does remarkably well. He also has turned three rushing attempts on the season into 49 yards. Averaging 16.3 yards per carry puts him in that Percy Harvin range—in six attempts, Harvin is averaging 14.3 yards per carry this season.

When the Saints drafted Cooks, they were getting an adaptable playmaker with a generous upside. Two weeks into the regular season and despite the Saints' dreadful start, he's living up to that billing. No wonder five out of the six columnists over at SI.com's The MMQB picked him to take home Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.

Aaron Lynch

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Scouting players prior to the draft is always a complex task. The big names who command all of the media attention are easy to pick out. But the further you get down the yellow brick road, the more challenging it becomes to find quality players.

Former USF edge-rusher Aaron Lynch is a great example of that very notion. During the predraft festivities, Lynch wasn't highly regarded by a lot of pundits. Nolan Nawrocki of NFL.com gave him a 5.17 on his grading scale. Essentially, that meant he had a "better-than-average chance to make an NFL roster."

San Francisco 49ers general manager Trent Baalke still took a shot in the fifth round on the athletic pass-rusher, hoping he would turn those physical gifts into a productive career.

It wasn't all roses and sacks for the 21-year-old right off the bat. "He’s a guy that came in here after the draft out of shape, was rounding into shape toward the end of the offseason workouts, then pulled—strangely—both hamstrings at once," 49ers defensive coordinator Vic Fangio told Matt Barrows of The Sacramento Bee.

Lynch has since recovered and played well during the first two weeks. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) puts Lynch at 37 defensive snaps on this season. Despite not registering a sack, he's been sent at the quarterback 26 times.

His biggest contribution to date has been on special teams. Against the Chicago Bears in Week 2, Lynch blocked a punt early in the game using his uncanny speed to burst through the line of scrimmage. Still a project pick, as the season continues to advance, he should see more opportunities to make plays.

Tre9er of Niners Nation agrees, tweeting "Pretty sure Aaron Lynch is going to start stealing snaps from Lemonier en masse."

Terrance West

Tony Dejak/Associated Press

From the moment the Cleveland Browns laid claim to running back Terrance West, the writing was scribed all over the wall: Even with Ben Tate coming over as a free agent, the workload would eventually fall into the capable hands of the former Towson tailback.

Tate's knee injury in Week 1 opened that door, and West has run through it with a vengeance. In relief of Tate against the Pittsburgh Steelers, West carried the ball 16 times for 100 yards. As the lead back in Week 2 taking on the New Orleans Saints, he picked up 68 yards rushing and 22 yards receiving and punched in a late touchdown.

Those numbers are good enough to make him the No. 5 leading rusher in the National Football League. Bleacher Report's Cian Fahey was impressed by what he's seen so far out of the young back. "As a running back, he doesn't have one great trait but rather a combination of different traits to be a versatile runner," Fahey wrote when breaking down his Week 2 showing.

West's talent is real. He's not going anywhere. Ben Tate or no Ben Tate, he's going to be a factor moving forward for this Browns offense—and an exciting one at that.

Kyle Fuller

Tony Avelar/Associated Press

Colin Kaepernick was formally introduced to a young cornerback out of Virginia Tech by the name of Kyle Fuller during the 49ers' loss to the Bears on Sunday Night Football.

Fuller was the Bears' first-round pick—a player few analysts even thought would be on the team's radar heading into May. What did Fuller do against the 49ers? Only come down with two vital interceptions that put the Bears in a position to come back and win the football game.

The 2014 rookie class had a lot of talented prospects who roam around in the secondary. Fuller might wind up becoming one of the best ones to emerge from that deep crop of players if he continues to perform like he did against the 49ers.

Kelvin Benjamin

Mike McCarn/Associated Press

It must be nice for Cam Newton to have a 6'5" wide receiver like Kelvin Benjamin out there on the field with him.

Benjamin and Newton put their newly established connection to the test against the Detroit Lions for the time in the regular season—the week prior, Benjamin worked with backup QB Derek Anderson while Newton was out nursing a rib injury.

No matter who's the signal-caller in Carolina, Benjamin has become a genuine target machine. In back-to-back weeks, eight passes have been thrown in his direction, which has resulted in him tallying 138 yards receiving and a touchdown.

Productivity and excitement are two qualities Benjamin has brought over with him from his playing days down at Florida State. Hopefully watching him use that gargantuan catch radius to haul in deep passes is something Panthers fans will enjoy for a long time.

He's already the de facto No. 1 receiver because of his size. The more Newton is able to work with him in practice, the stronger that bond will become. Check back in Week 14. Odds are you'll see a whole bunch of entertaining plays on the 6'5" pass-catcher's reel.

Isaiah Crowell

Tony Dejak/Associated Press

Not to be outdone by his partner in Cleveland, Terrance West, Isaiah Crowell is making a pretty strong case for himself in the Browns backfield.

Crowell blasted the Steelers in his regular-season debut as a complementary runner to West. His two rushing touchdowns and 32 yards came on only five carries.

Like West, Crowell is decisive with the ball in his hands. It's refreshing to see him slam through a crease. Running like that almost makes you forget about Trent "Happy Feet" Richardson. His 86 yards on 16 carries are good enough to warrant a solid 5.4 yards per carry on the year.

In a backup role, he's been nothing short of excellent. Accelerating through holes and making defenders miss, West has proved to be a valuable piece of the puzzle in Cleveland. Paired up with West, it sure looks like this team has two entertaining backs it can lean on for the foreseeable future.

Sammy Watkins

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Had Sammy Watkins landed somewhere else besides Buffalo in May's draft, more people would be talking about him. That's not a knock on the Bills—who just so happen to be 2-0. It's more indicative of the league's fascination with the perceived "powerhouse" clubs.

Watkins was pretty much a non-topic during the preseason, when a lot of people expected the Bills to be nothing more than a stepping stone for the New England Patriots in the AFC East.

Forget that Watkins was obliterating dudes on a regular basis at Clemson. Forget the fact that he was the best pass-catching prospect in the draft. After his Week 2 performance, Watkins made sure we all remembered what he was capable of.

Eight catches on 11 targets produced 117 yards receiving and a touchdown for the dazzling 21-year-old. He was all over the field, destroying the Miami Dolphins secondary—a lot of credit also goes to Bills offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett's play-calling.

Having a guy like Watkins out there makes a quarterback's life easier. His explosion, route running and quickness make him all sorts of trouble at any level of the field.

Jason Verrett

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"This is one of my favorite players in the entire draft. The knock is his size (5'9", 189 lbs), but he's feisty and so competitive. Sometimes a bigger wideout can take advantage of a matchup against him," NFL Media draft analyst Mike Mayock said when the San Diego Chargers drafted TCU cornerback Jason Verrett.

What Verrett lacks in size, he more than makes up for with his instincts and tenacity. The NFL's supposed love affair with taller cornerbacks—thanks to the Seattle Seahawks—didn't phase the Chargers brass.

It watched the tape like the rest of us and saw what this guy was capable of doing on defense. Two games into the 2014 season, Verrett has been fantastic. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) even ranks him as the fifth-best cornerback in the league right now.

Verrett still has a lot to do if he wants to improve his game. Battling with the Seahawks, PFF notes that he surrendered four receptions for 39 yards and a touchdown on four targets. Despite that, what we've seen so far has been solid.

Supreme physicality and anticipation still matter in this league. While everyone wants to be a 6'3" version of Darrelle Revis, sometimes that's just not in the cards. Plus, isn't it more captivating of a narrative to watch a 5'9" corner like Verrett bully bigger wide receivers?

Unless otherwise noted, all college football stats and information courtesy of Sports-Reference.com. Game scores, stats and information courtesy of ESPN.com.