NFL's Biggest Standout Rookies from NFL Week 1

The NFL’s opening weekend has come and passed, leaving us with a lot of new information to process and decipher. One takeaway that doesn’t require much thinking is that the 2015 rookie class had a strong debut. Several high-profile rookies were clear standouts among the crowd.

Standing out in Week 1 is a good sign of things to come. It’s hard to have sustained success in the NFL, but playing well off the bat is encouraging. The franchises that invested into these rookies certainly must be feeling good about their decisions after being rewarded in Week 1.

There were six great performances from rookies in the first week of play. We’ll take a look at each one, highlighting their debut showing. Extending their early success into the entire season is a whole new challenge, but we’ll be following closely each week.

Marcus Mariota, QB, Tennessee Titans

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What more could Marcus Mariota have done in his first game to prove he was ready for the NFL after all? The 2014 Heisman Trophy winner helped the Tennessee Titans blow the Tampa Bay Buccaneers out of their own stadium. Mariota finished with a perfect passer rating of 158.3 and four passing touchdowns.

Mariota deserves a lot of praise for his performance, but he is not the only one who starred in Week 1. Titans’ head coach Ken Whisenhunt also answered critics that worried whether he’d adjust his offense to fit Mariota’s skill set. As seen on Sunday, he certainly did.

Mariota completed 13 of 16 passes for 209 yards. His accuracy and sharp decision-making on was display, while opposing rookie quarterback Jameis Winston struggled in his debut. At least through one week, Mariota silenced his doubters.

This was a great debut for Mariota, but his biggest challenge is yet to come. When defenses adjust to Mariota in the next few months, he’ll have to show the ability to overcome new defensive looks. If Week 1 is any indicator, he’ll be just fine when that time arrives.

Marcus Peters, CB, Kansas City Chiefs

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Although Marcus Peters wasn’t the first cornerback off the board in the draft, he may have been the most talented. He earned the most Week 1 snaps of any rookie cornerback, per Pro Football Focus. His matchup was a very difficult draw: Houston Texans’ receiver DeAndre Hopkins.

Peters logged his first career interception on his first snap and also had two passes defensed. It’s as if he has a magnet for the football in coverage. Opposing quarterbacks must be extra careful when targeting his assignment.

Now, Peters was charged with allowing two touchdowns in coverage by Pro Football Focus. Each touchdown pass went to Hopkins, and Hopkins simply beat Peters to the ball. Sometimes great receivers can beat solid coverage, which is what happened to Peters.

That’s no reason to be down on Peters, though. His first game was still a good showing as to why he was highly touted out of college. Expect him to continue to play well as he adjusts to the NFL’s speed and spacing.

Leonard Williams, DE, New York Jets

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After a strong preseason performance by Jets defensive end Leonard Williams, it shouldn’t be surprising to see the rookie playing well in Week 1. Despite facing one of the best offensive lines in the NFL, Williams was constantly disrupting the Browns’ game plan. The 3-4 end had a great debut.

Williams finished with three quarterback hurries, three tackles and two run stops, per Pro Football Focus. His ability to impact the play whether a run or a pass is what made him so alluring in the draft process. It’s very difficult to find impact linemen who can be so disruptive.

Some may have considered Williams to be a superfluous pick at the time, but his immediate contributions to the Jets will make them look wise as time passes. Williams was as dominant in Week 1 as he was in college, which is one of the biggest compliments he could have earned in one game. If he can play that way against a top-tier line, wait until he faces a mediocre or poor unit.

Tyler Lockett, WR, Seattle Seahawks

L.G. Patterson/Associated Press

Finding an invaluable role player in the middle rounds is exactly what winning franchises tend to do. It takes some luck for that player to fall to the right situation, and that’s what happened to the Seattle Seahawks. Nabbing Tyler Lockett with the 69th overall pick in the 2015 draft is already proving to be quite the coup.

Lockett is ridiculously explosive as a receiver and return man. He had two punt returns for a total of 63 yards, including one touchdown. He was also targeted four times as a receiver, catching each one for a total of 34 yards.

Seattle really needs Lockett for its offense to evolve past the basic, predictable sets it's run for the last few seasons. He’s more dynamic with his quickness and route running than most of the other options on the roster. Don’t be surprised to see him getting more targets as the season progresses.

Karlos Williams, RB, Florida State

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Once considered a promising NFL prospect at Florida State, Karlos Williams fell to the fifth round of the 2015 class after a disappointing senior season. Instead of looking sleek and explosive in 2014, he looked slower than ever. So he reinvented himself and lost some weight, leading to a breakout debut performance.

Williams has always been a freaky athlete on the field. The former safety has a great frame to power through opponents, as well as the speed to pull away from them. He showed all of this again in Week 1.

In a reserve role, Williams had 55 yards on just six rushing attempts. He had an exciting 26-yard touchdown run, where he created a big play out of nothing. That’s the type of impact that was forecasted entering his senior campaign at Florida State.

Carl Davis, DE, Baltimore Ravens

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What plagued Carl Davis in college was not an issue in his rookie debut in Week 1. Davis was inconsistent at Iowa with his effort; sometimes he was unblockable, and other times he’d disappear for an entire game. The Baltimore Ravens’ franchise was likely a perfect landing spot for him to succeed, as they will not accept that mindset.

Davis was impressively stout against the Denver Broncos in the run game. He was credited with just one quarterback hurry, but his impact eating blocks as a run blocker was as valuable. Remember, Baltimore relies on their its pass-rushers more than down linemen to create pass pressures.  

We’ll see if his role slightly changes moving forward. The loss of Terrell Suggs for the season will force the Ravens to find another capable disruptor. Davis flashed that talent at Iowa. We’ll see if he unlocks his potential moving forward.

All stats used are from sports-reference.com.

Ian Wharton is an NFL Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. 

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