NFL Week 7 Rookie Rankings: Surveying Rookie Class, Post-Week 6

The sixth week of the NFL season is in the books, which leaves us about one-third through the 17-week schedule. Rookies are getting traction and feeling more comfortable. Our weekly rookie rankings have undergone some changes after seeing these first-year players several times.

What is happening in the midst of their first season is still a potential indicator of how the next half-decade or so will play out. Players who impact their teams right away generally stick around and continue their positive influence. That shouldn’t take away from those who need more time to develop into a solid player, though.

The first six weeks of the season have featured peaks and valleys for this rookie class. Regardless of draft position, we’ve seen impactful play around the league. Teams already benefiting from their draft class must be brimming with excitement.

For this week’s rankings, we take a look at which players have performed the best to this point. Consideration has been given to where each rookie stands on his team’s depth chart, but the rankings aim to reflect how each player has performed thus far compared to what the expectations are.

Our rankings from even last week are now outdated, as Week 6 featured several eye-popping performances. The NFL's volatile nature must be considered as well. The players listed in the following slides, nonetheless, stood out the most during the first six weeks of football.

Top 50 Overall

Ann Heisenfelt/Associated Press

As the season progresses, we will track which players are moving up or down the board after having good or bad games. For this week, the listed movement may be somewhat significant, based on playing time given to each rookie. The few rookies who really stood out will rise higher on the top-50 overall list.

Some high draft picks have yet to make their presence felt, which is holding them out of the top 50. Conversely, some late-round picks and even undrafted rookies stood out enough this week to be among the top first-year players. The ebbs and flows of an NFL rookie season can be as dramatic as any in all of professional sports.

Standout Week 6 performers such as wide receiver Stefon Diggs and defensive tackle Leonard Williams are rising up the big board. One of the best under-the-radar rookies so far is linebacker Jordan Hicks. He saw a big jump this week.

Top 50 Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	Leonard Williams	DE	Jets	1.6	9	Up
2	Amari Cooper	WR	Raiders	1.4	1	Down
3	Henry Anderson	DE	Colts	3.29	3	Same
4	Ronald Darby	CB	Bills	2.18	4	Same
5	Todd Gurley	RB	Rams	1.10	5	Same
6	Marcus Peters	CB	Chiefs	1.18	6	Same
7	Vic Beasley	DE	Falcons	1.8	7	Same
8	Marcus Mariota	QB	Titans	1.2	2	Down
9	Jameis Winston	DE	Buccaneers	1.1	8	Down
10	Jordan Hicks	LB	Eagles	3.20	45	Up
11	Damarious Randall	CB	Packers	1.30	11	Same
12	Shaq Thompson	LB	Panthers	1.25	37	Up
13	David Parry	DT	Seahawks	5.15	17	Up
14	T.J. Yeldon	RB	Jaguars	2.4	14	Same
15	Kevin Johnson	CB	Texans	1.16	10	Down
16	Hau'oli Kikaha	LB	Saints	2.12	12	Down
17	Thomas Rawls	RB	Seahawks	UDFA	13	Down
18	Arik Armstead	DE	49ers	1.17	18	Same
19	Eddie Goldman	DT	Bears	2.7	19	Same
20	Stefon Diggs	WR	Chargers	1.15	20	Same
21	Tyler Lockett	WR	Seahawks	3.5	22	Up
22	Ali Marpet	OG	Buccaneers	2.29	25	Up
23	Stephone Anthony	LB	Saints	1.31	44	Up
24	Frank Clark	DE	Seahawks	2.31	35	Up
25	Jamison Crowder	WR	Redskins	4.6	34	Up
26	Adrian Amos	SAF	Bears	5.6	26	Same
27	Tre' Jackson	OG	Patriots	4.12	27	Same
28	T.J. Clemmings	OT	Vikings	4.11	15	Down
29	Karlos Williams	RB	Bills	5.29	29	Same
30	David Johnson	RB	Cardinals	3.22	30	Same
31	Preston Smith	LB	Redskins	2.6	31	Same
32	Rob Havenstein	OT	Rams	2.25	35	Up
33	Brandon Scherff	OG	Redskins	1.5	21	Down
34	Eric Kendricks	LB	Vikings	2.13	16	Down
35	Kyshoen Jarrett	SAF	Redskins	6.5	23	Down
36	Jamon Brown	OG	Dolphins	1.14	36	Same
37	Bobby Richardson	DE	Saints	UDFA	32	Down
38	Matt Jones	RB	Redskins	3.31	38	Same
39	James Sample	SAF	Jaguars	5.4	39	Same
40	Maxx Williams	WR	Ravens	2.23	48	Up
41	Byron Jones	SAF	Cowboys	1.27	41	Same
42	Duke Johnson	RB	Browns	3.13	42	Same
43	Ryan Delaire	DE	Panthers	UDFA	43	Same
44	Dorial Green-Beckham	WR	Titans	2.8	47	Up
45	Melvin Gordon	RB	Chargers	1.18	20	Down
46	Michael Bennett	DT	Jaguars	6.4	46	Same
47	DeVante Parker	WR	Dolphins	1.14	36	Down
48	Jaquiski Tartt	SAF	49ers	2.14	48	Same
49	Phillip Dorsett	WR	Colts	1.29	34	Down
50	Landon Collins	SAF	Giants	2.1	50	Same

Quarterbacks

Mark Zaleski/Associated Press

The Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota debate continues to favor one player over the other in alternating fashion. Marcus Mariota's poor, injured performance in Week 6 makes this race razor-tight. Winston didn’t play, as his Buccaneers had an early bye week.

The raw numbers suggest the two are somewhat close. They are even closer in value than the numbers say, though, as their situations and play styles differ greatly.

Mariota has always been more conservative than Winston, which affects the plays he makes and what the Tennessee Titans run for him. That’s not to say Mariota isn’t producing better results right now, but we have to at least acknowledge that aspect.

Look for Winston to show even more growth coming out of the bye week. He’s staying in second in this ranking for the time being, but a strong argument can easily be made for him being the better rookie so far. That move won’t happen when he didn’t play last week, though.

Quarterback Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	Marcus Mariota	QB	Titans	1.2	1	Same
2	Jameis Winston	QB	Buccaneers	1.1	2	Same
3	Brett Hundley	QB	Packers	5.11	3	Same
4	Garrett Grayson	QB	Saints	3.11	4	Same
5	Bryce Petty	QB	Jets	4.4	5	Same

Running Backs

Matt Ludtke/Associated Press

Week 6 failed to live up to the expectations that the rookie running back class had established in previous games. With star Todd Gurley on a bye week, the stage was set for another back to bask in the spotlight. Suffice to say, that didn’t happen.

Atlanta saw Tevin Coleman return to the lineup and provide some spark plays. His four carries and 40 yards aren’t enough for him to re-enter the top five, but it is worth mentioning. He may not steal many carries from Devonta Freeman, but he must be ready for when his number is called.

Melvin Gordon must be the rookie class disappointment. The Chargers’ running back hasn’t been near the playmaker he was expected to be after an electric collegiate career. He leads the rookie class with four fumbles and has consistently struggled with poor vision.  

Running Back Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	Todd Gurley	RB	Rams	1.10	1	Same
2	T.J. Yeldon	RB	Jaguars	2.4	4	Up
3	Thomas Rawls	RB	Seahawks	UDFA	2	Down
4	Karlos Williams	RB	Bills	5.19	5	Up
5	Duke Johnson	RB	Browns	3.13	N/A	Up

Wide Receivers

Seth Wenig/Associated Press

It’s time to shake up the rookie receiver rankings now that we have a bigger sample size to work with. Several mid-round picks have emerged as legitimate threats within their offenses. On the other hand, some highly drafted receivers have struggled breaking into lineups due to injuries or deeper rosters.

The new No. 3 receiver in our top five is Vikings receiver Stefon Diggs. He debuted on the board a couple of weeks ago, but dropped when he had a Week 5 bye. He’s firmly in the top few spots after producing the third-most rookie receiving yards despite limited playing time.

Raiders receiver Amari Cooper has recently slowed down in terms of production, but he may ramp it back up coming off a bye. He’s been the most impressive rookie receiver in the class. It would be quite surprising if he loses his top spot anytime soon.

Wide Receiver Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	Amari Cooper	WR	Raiders	1.4	1	Same
2	Stefon Diggs	WR	Vikings	5.10	N/A	Up
3	Tyler Lockett	WR	Seahawks	3.5	3	Same
4	Jamison Crowder	WR	Redskins	4.6	2	Down
5	Ty Montgomery	WR	Packers	3.30	4	Down

Tight Ends

Don Wright/Associated Press

One of the least impressive rookie groups of all from the 2015 class is the tight end unit. There’s just one tight end with 100 yards total receiving in the first six games. That is a ghastly figure for a prominent position league-wide.

We’ve shuffled the names in the top five after several rookies had minor production last week. With such little production separating each player, there is room for major movement every week. The most interesting part of this list is where some of the players were found compared to others.

Blocking ability is a difficult one to account for since it is subjective. But it does seem to me that Maxx Williams is not only the best receiver, but also the top blocker. The Ravens have often featured him as an in-line blocker.

Tight End Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	Maxx Williams	TE	Ravens	2.23	1	Same
2	James O'Shaughnessy	TE	Chiefs	5.37	5	Up
3	Will Tye	TE	Giants	UDFA	3	Same
4	Nick Boyle	TE	Ravens	5.35	4	Same
5	Clive Walford	TE	Raiders	3.4	2	Down

Offensive Tackles

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

The rookie offensive tackle class has had a tough time adjusting to the NFL. The first six weeks haven’t been consistent at all. We’ve seen significant movement on this list each week.

Some of these struggles should be expected. Mid-round picks such as Minnesota’s T.J. Clemmings weren't even supposed to start, until an injury occurred. It often takes a year or two to see good play from young tackles as they transform their body and technique.

Week 6 was another brutal showing for the class, in general. Of the top six tackles who have received consistent playing time thus far, two are probably playing at an acceptable level. Those happen to be our top two once again this week. It’s just been a down year for teams starting rookie tackles.

Offensive Tackle Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	Rob Havenstein	OT	Rams	2.25	1	Same
2	T.J. Clemmings	OT	Vikings	4.11	2	Same
3	Kendall Lamm	OT	Texans	UDFA	3	Same
4	Ty Sambrailo	OT	Broncos	2.27	4	Same
5	Donovan Smith	OT	Buccaneers	2.2	5	Same

Offensive Guards

Duane Burleson/Associated Press

After a strong start to the season, the rookie guard group is starting to show their youth. The collective group has seen better weeks, but this past one was not overly good. Because of the poor play overall, we have significant movement across the board.

New to the top spot is Laken Tomlinson. The Lions’ left guard has dipped in and out of this list with his rollercoaster season, but he was excellent on Sunday. According to Pro Football Focus, he didn’t allow a single pressure or hit on the quarterback. No other full-time starting rookie has been able to say that since Jamon Brown in Week 3.

Brown has been a good pass blocker, but struggles against the run. Still, his impact has been noticeable for the young Rams. The other two clear impact guards thus far reside in New England. Their rotation of Tre’ Jackson and Shaquille Mason has been surprisingly effective.

Offensive Guard Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	Laken Tomlinson	G	Lions	1.28	N/A	Up
2	Jamon Brown	G	Rams	3.8	3	Up
3	Ali Marpet	G	Buccaneers	2.29	2	Down
4	Brandon Scherff	G	Redskins	1.5	1	Down
5	Tre' Jackson	G	Patriots	4.12	4	Down

Centers

Duane Burleson/Associated Press

One of the NFL's more nondescript positions is the offensive center. Rarely do centers have to do the brunt work that a guard or tackle does, but the center is usually the unit's brain. Centers must identify blitzers and the "Mike" linebacker. They’re incredibly important.

But the NFL has a lot of quality centers, and the rookie pool suggests that not many starters were needed. There are currently three starting rookie centers across the league. The two drafted ones, Mitch Morse and Hroniss Grasu, have been the best of the three.

Grasu bounced back from a rough debut game to hold his own against Detroit. The Lions lack a standout defensive tackle, but Grasu’s ability to create in the run game could end up being a nice boost for the Bears’ offense. The third-round pick from Oregon has quickly adapted to NFL defenders' strength and speed.

Center Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	Mitch Morse	OC	Chiefs	2.17	1	Same
2	Hroniss Grasu	OC	Bears	3.7	3	Up
3	David Andrews	OC	Patriots	UDFA	2	Down
4	Andy Gallik	OC	Titans	6.32	4	Same
5	Kristjan Sokoli	OC	Seahawks	6.38	5	Same

Defensive Ends

Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

Arguably, defensive end is the rookie class' most talented and deepest position. Whether playing in a 4-3 or 3-4 defensive front, you can find the top ends right here. The difficult part is actually ranking this talented group.

We have a new top defensive end this week. Leonard Williams of the New York Jets slides in above incumbent Henry Anderson. It’s not that Anderson has played poorly, but Williams continues to land hits on the quarterback every week.

Another first-round pick, Vic Beasley, has easily been the best 4-3 defensive end. He’s not a good run defender yet, but he is an impact pass-rusher already. His natural speed and bend will continue to torture offensive tackles for years to come.

Defensive End Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	Leonard Williams	DE	Jets	1.6	3	Up
2	Henry Anderson	DE	Colts	3.29	1	Down
3	Vic Beasley	DE	Falcons	1.8	2	Down
4	Arik Armstead	DE	49ers	1.17	4	Same
5	Frank Clark	DE	Seahawks	2.31	5	Same

Defensive Tackles

Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images

Not much has changed for the rookie defensive tackle class. We haven’t seen much overall production from any of the rookies in terms of stats. But the film for several of them has been encouraging.

The pure nose tackles have been the best of the bunch so far. Colts tackle David Parry has been a helpful presence while eating double-teams. We can say the same for Cardinals rookie Rodney Gunter. Especially in multiple-front defenses or purely 3-4 fronts, these nose tackles make everything else possible for their teammates.

Not much has changed in our rankings this week. Danny Shelton continues to struggle to make an impact for the Cleveland Browns and stays out of our top five. Malcom Brown of the New England Patriots has shown some flashes. He at least has filled his run-lane responsibilities better than Shelton has so far.  

Defensive Tackle Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	David Parry	DT	Colts	5.15	1	Same
2	Eddie Goldman	DT	Bears	2.7	2	Same
3	Rodney Gunter	DT	Cardinals	4.17	3	Same
4	Michael Bennett	DT	Jaguars	6.4	4	Same
5	Malcom Brown	DT	Patriots	1.32	5	Same

Linebackers

Rich Schultz/Getty Images

Whether you’re looking for a 3-4 or 4-3 outside linebacker, you’ll find the top five right here. Luckily for this group, three 4-3 outside linebackers played significant snaps, while four 3-4 rush linebackers were able to see the field often. Teams that needed impactful play from these rookies continue to wait, though.

Our new No. 1 linebacker is Jordan Hicks. Hicks has been an impact player for the Eagles defense. He’s shown the ability to be an impact run defender and competent in pass coverage. That’s hard to do for any linebacker, let alone a rookie.

Carolina Panthers linebacker Shaq Thompson rounds out the top five. Despite Thompson and Eric Kendricks having a bye week, they have been impact players for their respective defenses. This is one of the strongest positional groups of all the rookies.

Linebacker Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	Jordan Hicks	LB	Eagles	3.20	4	Up
2	Shaq Thompson	LB	Panthers	1.25	3	Up
3	Hau'oli Kikaha	LB	Saints	2.12	1	Down
4	Eric Kendricks	LB	Vikings	2.13	2	Down
5	Stephone Anthony	LB	Saints	1.31	5	Same

Cornerbacks

Jeffrey Phelps/Associated Press

This rookie cornerback group is a lot of fun to watch. It’s hard to find quality rookie cornerbacks because of the sheer difficulty of the position, but we have a few standouts thus far. Their early success should have teams kicking themselves for passing over instant starters at such a valuable spot.

Trying to decide who is the best rookie cornerback is difficult. Chiefs cornerback Marcus Peters has consistently played well against elite quarterbacks and wide receivers. Bills cornerback Ronald Darby has showed great ball skills and true coverage talent. Houston’s Kevin Johnson has quietly been a solid starter as well.

Our rankings stay the same as last week. It’s worth noting the solid play of Damarious Randall, as well. There are four legitimate starting cornerbacks from this rookie class, which is incredibly rare this early in the season. The sky is the limit for the members of our top five rookie corners.

Cornerback Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	Ronald Darby	CB	Bills	2.18	1	Same
2	Marcus Peters	CB	Chiefs	1.18	2	Same
3	Damarious Randall	CB	Packers	1.30	4	Up
4	Kevin Johnson	CB	Texans	1.16	3	Down
5	Eric Rowe	CB	Eagles	2.15	5	Same

Safeties

Ed Zurga/Associated Press

Our top five safeties stay the same this week. With Kyshoen Jarrett and Adrian Amos clearly the best two safeties right now, this is a group showing some upside at the top. The bottom of the top five has struggled with consistency, though.  

The rest of the safety class continues to be mediocre, at best. Without impact pass defenders at the position, the rookie safeties have just been treading water. That’s not to say one of these young defenders won’t break out, but the early returns haven’t been notable.

There’s no other NFL position like safety. The disparity between bad starters and even starter-quality is steep, making the elites even that more obvious. Unfortunately for this rookie class, every safety simply struggled to make any type of impact. 

Safety Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	Kyshoen Jarrett	SAF	Redskins	6.5	1	Same
2	Adrian Amos	SAF	Bears	5.6	2	Same
3	James Sample	SAF	Jaguars	4.5	3	Same
4	Landon Collins	SAF	Giants	2.1	4	Same
5	Byron Jones	SAF	Cowboys	1.27	5	Same

Specialists

John Bazemore/Associated Press

Our specialists rankings feature four return men and one punter. The number of running backs getting offensive snaps is down, but they’re making an impact on special teams.

Although players such as David Johnson and Ameer Abdullah have shown some offensive promise, they’ve been primarily playing special teams. That earns a ranking here. Those two have flashed special abilities with the ball in their hands.

Marcus Murphy is a scatback who has specialized on returns. He’s second among all rookies in terms of total return yards, which includes both punt and kick returns. The diminutive playmaker is becoming a must-watch return man every Sunday.

The lone punter now on the list is Miami’s Matt Darr. He leads all rookie punters in net yards and average punt distance. His consistency has been notable, and he’s locked down that spot in Miami for the foreseeable future.

Specialist Rankings

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team	Pick	LW	Moving
1	Marcus Murphy	KR	Saints	7.13	1	Same
2	David Johnson	KR	Cardinals	3.22	2	Same
3	Ameer Abdullah	KR	Lions	2.22	3	Same
4	Corey Grant	P	Jaguars	UDFA	5	Up
5	Matt Darr	KR	Dolphins	UDFA	4	Down

All stats used are from Sports-Reference.com.

Ian Wharton is an NFL Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. 

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