Alvin Kamara Wins 2017-18 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award

New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara bested Kansas City Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt to be named the 2017 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year at the NFL Honors in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Saturday night. 

NFL.com's Gregg Rosenthal relayed the final voting tallies: 

The Saints' official Twitter account noted Kamara and cornerback Marshon Lattimore made a bit of history: 

Prior to the season, expectations were largely tempered for the third-round pick out of Tennessee. But Kamara burst on the scene in a big way and produced one of the most electric rookie seasons in recent memory. 

Appearing in all 16 games for the Saints, the 22-year-old posted 1,554 yards and 13 touchdowns from scrimmage. All told, he rushed for 728 yards on a league-best 6.1 yards per carry and caught 81 passes for 826 yards and five touchdowns. 

According to Sports Illustrated's Ben Baskin, Kamara became the third rookie in league history, and the first in over 30 years, to tally at least 800 receiving yards and 700 rushing yards. In fact, the only other players to join that club this decade are David Johnson, Le'Veon Bell and Matt Forte. 

"He's very smooth and he makes it look easy," Carolina Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly said, according to the team's official website. "It's effortless for him. It's like he's just gliding. It's not like he's twitchy fast, but he makes guys miss.

"I haven't seen a guy like him in a while."

Thanks to those efforts, Kamara and backfield partner Mark Ingram became the first pair of running backs  from the same team to be named to the Pro Bowl in at least 42 years. 

Expectations will understandably skyrocket following Kamara's sensational Big Easy debut, but it's clear the newly crowned Offensive Rookie of the Year has the open-field savvy and next-level speed to be a matchup nightmare for years to come.