NFL Youngsters Who Could Still Blossom into Stars

Every young player enters the NFL with dreams of becoming a star. It's especially true of players drafted in the first couple of rounds as an invitation to the draft brings with it an expectation that stardom is just around the corner.

For some, that's exactly what happens. Of the first four picks of the 2018 draft, three (Baker Mayfield, Saquon Barkley and Denzel Ward) are already stars after a single season. Sam Darnold might also be one, simply by virtue of being a starting quarterback in New York.

However, things didn't go so smoothly for others. Maybe an ill-timed injury or unfavorable situation cost them valuable practice reps and playing time. Maybe it just took those youngsters some time to adjust at the game's highest level.

That's the case for each of the players listed here. But so is the fact that each is immensely talented. This is the year talent wins out and we find out their climbs to stardom weren't derailed by early struggles.

They were just delayed.

Jaire Alexander, CB, Green Bay Packers

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Succeeding in the National Football League requires a healthy amount of self-confidence. As Jason Wilde reported for the Wisconsin State Journal, Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander isn't lacking in that regard.

"I just want to have a good year. For real, I see myself in the Pro Bowl. I see myself as an All-Pro," he said. "I have all the confidence in the world. Last year was a great starting point for me, but this year is going to be my 'dog' year. I'm putting my stamp on that."

In fairness to the 18th overall pick of the 2018 draft, it's not like Alexander didn't have a good rookie year. He played in 13 games (11 starts), recording 66 tackles, an interception and 11 passes defensed. But as is so often the case with young cornerbacks, he experienced plenty of ups and downs.

Those elevated numbers are indicative of a corner who was targeted a lot. Corners who lock down on their receivers don't get targeted that regularly. Alexander also missed some time with a groin injury.

Still, he offered glimpses of the speed and athleticism that made him a first-round pick to begin with. But too often, the good plays by Alexander got lost in a wildly disappointing season by the Packers as a team.

They should be better in 2019 under first-year head coach Matt LaFleur. Alexander is penciled in as a starter opposite fellow youngster Kevin King, arguably as the Pack's top cover man.

That's a marquee gig: the kind that produces stars.

Josh Allen, QB, Buffalo Bills

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One year ago, the Buffalo Bills traded up to select Wyoming's Josh Allen with the seventh overall pick in the 2018 draft. Given that hefty investment, the expectation for Allen was clear: He was to be the franchise quarterback for whom the Bills have been searching.

Allen's first season was an up-and-down affair. The same accuracy issues that plagued him at Wyoming were evident in Buffalo. He completed less than 53 percent of his passes and threw two more interceptions than touchdowns. But Allen also displayed impressive athleticism by gaining 631 rushing yards and averaging over seven yards per carry.

Most importantly, the Bills were more competitive than most expected in a number of games. The wins might not have been there, but Buffalo wasn't an easy out.

The Bills had one of the weaker groups of skill-position talent in the NFL a year ago, so this offseason was all about adding weaponry for Allen. Buffalo was aggressive bringing in veteran talent at tailback (Frank Gore, T.J. Yeldon), wide receiver (Cole Beasley, John Brown) and tight end (Tyler Kroft). More came via the draft.

Allen has also had a full offseason to work on his craft, and as tailback LeSean McCoy told Vic Carucci of the Buffalo News, it shows.

"He looks better," McCoy said. "I think he looks more confident. I think last year he just played off of talent. Sometimes, when quarterbacks are really talented, you overlook how smart they really are. Josh is smart."

Jonathan Allen, DE, Washington Allen

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For starters, Josh Allen and Jonathan Allen are not related.

It can be argued that the latter is already something of a star. In his second season, Allen peeled off 61 total tackles and eight sacks, emerging as a key contributor on the defensive line in the nation's capital.

But the 2019 season is shaping up as the one in which the 17th overall pick of the 2017 draft will truly come into his own. The talent is certainly there. In his second season, Allen blossomed as both a run defender and a pass-rusher. He looked a lot like a young Calais Campbell with the Arizona Cardinals.

The Redskins also have a supporting cast that should help Allen this year. Tackle Da'Ron Payne showed flashes as a rookie by amassing five sacks. Matthew Ioannidis is coming off a career season of his own with 7.5 sacks. And the Redskins traded back into the first round of the 2019 draft to select Mississippi State edge-rusher (and combine star) Montez Sweat.

From all indications, the front seven will be the strength of the Washington defense in 2019.

And Allen is the centerpiece of that front seven.

Derek Barnett, DE, Philadelphia Eagles

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The Philadelphia Eagles have a long history of excellent defensive line play: Trent Cole, Clyde Simmons, Jerome Brown, Michael Bennett, Hugh Douglas and, of course, the player most believe is the best defensive end in NFL history in Reggie White.

Derek Barnett isn't going to join that list just by having a better 2019 season. But he will get his career back on track, and that's a step in the right direction.

Barnett's modest rookie numbers (21 tackles and five sacks) could in large part be attributed to two things: the rookie learning curve for pass-rushers and a loaded defensive front that relegated the youngster to a rotational role.

During his second season in 2018, Barnett's numbers dropped even further to just 16 tackles and 2.5 sacks in six games before a torn rotator cuff ended his season.

However, if you extrapolate those marks out over a full 16 games, Barnett would have (in theory) posted over 40 stops and about seven sacks. Factor in the potential effect of the injury before Barnett was shut down, and it's entirely possible he could have bettered those numbers.

The 6'3", 259-pound Barnett was the 14th overall pick back in 2017, and now that Bennett is with the New England Patriots, he's going to be called upon to play a larger role for the Eagles.

Barnett has a real chance to amass more sacks in 2019 than in his first two seasons combined.

Dalvin Cook, RB, Minnesota Vikings

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If you play fantasy football, the mention of Minnesota Vikings tailback Dalvin Cook is probably enough to get you reaching for your finest throwing tomatoes.

Over the first month of his rookie season in 2017, Cook looked great. In the first game of his professional career, he peeled off 127 rushing yards against the New Orleans Saints. But in his fourth, Cook tore his ACL. Just like that, his season was over.

Cook's second campaign told a similar story. There were bright spots—he averaged over 5.6 yards per carry and gouged the Miami Dolphins for 163 total yards in December 2018—but he also missed five games due to injury and came up short of 1,000 total yards.

Cook is healthy now, and Terrell Davis (who knows a thing or two about running the football) wrote at NFL.com that he believes Gary Kubiak's arrival in the Twin Cities means great things for the young tailback in 2019:

"Kubiak is the right guy to right this offense -- I know because I played for Kubiak as the running back for the Denver Broncos from 1995 to 2002. Kubiak brought out the best in me (and the entire Broncos' offense) during our run to back-to-back Super Bowl titles in the late 1990s. In fact, Kubiak's offenses ranked among the top five in total offense and top 10 in scoring offense in eight of his 11 seasons as Broncos offensive coordinator (1995-2005). Great news for Kirk Cousins, Cook and the entire offense."

Cook's durability remains a concern. But if he can stay on the field, his third season will make those tomato-chuckers forget all about the first two.

Marcus Davenport, DE, New Orleans Saints

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The New Orleans Saints obviously saw something they liked a great deal in UTSA edge-rusher Marcus Davenport. They dealt their first-round pick in this year's draft to move up to No. 14 overall in 2018 and select the small-school star.

However, Davenport's rookie season didn't go as planned. He underwent surgery to repair a thumb injury, which cost the youngster valuable reps on the practice field. It showed in the regular season. While he had his moments (including a two-sack effort against the Minnesota Vikings), he managed just 22 tackles and 4.5 sacks.

It was hardly the sort of impact the Saints were looking for given all they've invested in Davenport.

However, the 6'6", 265-pounder is fully healthy entering his second professional training camp. Davenport plays opposite one of the better 4-3 ends in the league in Cameron Jordan, which should equate to a fair amount of single-teams on the field. And while it didn't show in his rookie numbers, there's a reason the Saints moved up to draft Davenport: elite athleticism and agility off the edge.

It's difficult enough for rookie edge-rushers to make a first-year dent without missing much of the offseason due to injury. But while Davenport spent most of his inaugural season playing catch-up, that's turned into caught-up at this point.

The next step is to blow up.

O.J. Howard, TE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

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As Greg Auman reported for The Athletic, at least one person believes O.J. Howard has already arrived as a star. As a matter of fact, Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston even called the third-year pro the best tight end in the NFL.

"How many people know Rob Gronkowski has retired?" Winston quipped at his youth football camp. "So without further ado, the NFL's best tight end, O.J. Howard. He's the best in the game."

Winston's opinion aside, the numbers don't exactly bear that out. A stat line of 60 receptions, 997 yards and 11 touchdowns would indeed be an impressive season for Howard. The problem is that those numbers represent Howard's two seasons put together.

Caveats can be applied to Howard's lack of production, though. The quarterback play in Tampa has been uneven the past two years, with Winston and Ryan Fitzpatrick tagging in and out last year. Injuries were also an issue for Howard in 2018; he missed six games last year with foot and ankle injuries.

Never mind that tight end is another position at which young players often take time to find their sea legs. Even Gronkowski had a quiet rookie year and just one 1,000-yard campaign over his first four seasons.

This isn't to say Howard will explode like Gronk in 2011. But he's a wildly athletic mismatch of a tight end with a new head coach in Bruce Arians who likes to spread the field and a more settled situation at quarterback.

The ingredients are there for a third-year surge.

Kerryon Johnson, RB, Detroit Lions

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At one point last year, it appeared Kerryon Johnson wasn't going to have to wait long to become a star in the NFL. In just his third game, the second-round pick out of Auburn gashed the New England Patriots for 101 yards on 16 carries. Less than a month later, he torched the Miami Dolphins for over 150 yards on the ground.

However, a knee injury cut Johnson's season short and put his ascension on hold.

Tim Twentyman of the team's official website expects the climb to resume in 2019:

"Johnson produced two 100-yard rushing performances, including a career-high 158 yards in a Week 7 win in Miami. He had six games where he notched more than 85 total yards from scrimmage.

"The Lions are still going to use a running-back-by-committee approach, but Johnson is expected to be the lead back and get the most opportunities when healthy. He's not going to surprise any teams this year, and opponents will have a game plan to stop him, but he should get every opportunity to make plays in Darrell Bevell's running back-friendly offense."

That last part may actually be the biggest key to Johnson having a big year.

Whether with the Minnesota Timberwolves or Seattle Seahawks, Bevell's offenses over the past decade-plus have leaned heavily on the run. And while C.J. Anderson and passing-down back Theo Riddick will get some work, Johnson should lead Detroit in touches by a fairly large margin.

Assuming he stays healthy, Johnson will coast past 1,000 rushing yards in 2019 and establish himself as a young ball-carrier on the rise.

Christian Kirk, WR, Arizona Cardinals

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Sometimes, NFL stardom can be as much about circumstance and situation as talent and ability.

This isn't to say Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Christian Kirk doesn't have talent. He showed flashes during a rookie season in which he reeled in 43 passes for 590 yards and three touchdowns despite playing on the worst offense in the league.

Now, Kirk will operate in head coach Kliff Kingsbury's Air Raid offense—a scheme similar to the one in which he starred at Texas A&M. And Marc Sessler of NFL.com believes that could mean a massive leap forward:

"We lack an exact picture of Kliff Kingsbury's Air Raid-flavored offense, but it's apparent the attack will pepper enemies with four-wide sets that force defenses to make critical decisions on the fly...

"Kingsbury went out of his way to note that Kirk 'has a good feel for it, as well,' after shining in a familiar scheme at Texas A&M. Off to a fast start, Kirk's stock is rising as the Cardinals prepare to feature his gifts as a deep threat. I'm betting on Kingsbury and [Kyler] Murray churning out a fleet of big-yardage targets led by the frisky Kirk."

Arizona added a pair of wideouts in this year's draft in Andy Isabella and Hakeem Butler, and Larry Fitzgerald is still in town. But Kirk has a chance to establish himself as Kyler Murray's No. 1 receiver in 2019.

If that's the case, big numbers are absolutely going to follow.

Harold Landry, EDGE, Tennessee Titans

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There were quite a few changes on the Tennessee defense this offseason, including the retirement of Brian Orakpo and the departure of Derrick Morgan, who remains a free agent. The Titans added some veteran help by signing Cameron Wake, but the lack of a big push at the position would seem to indicate a measure of confidence in the pass-rushers the team already has on the roster.

The most promising of those is second-year pro Harold Landry.

Landry had his moments in 15 games as a rookie, tallying 44 tackles and 4.5 sacks. As Erik Bacharach reported for the Nashville Tennessean, head coach Mike Vrabel has been impressed by Landry's willingness to try new things in practice in an effort to improve his technique:

"Guys, I think, have to be willing to use new moves that we practice in individual, when we go to the team periods, when we put pads on in training camp, whatever that may be, even if it doesn't work. A great example of that, and I know he's not here, Whitney Mercilus would do that. He would use three or four different moves, and he would try to practice those throughout practice. The ones that we may put in, or talk about, or work on in individual, he would try to do those. Maybe he didn't have success with it, but he could say, 'I gave it a chance. Now I'll move on to the next move.'"

It's not at all unusual for pass-rushers to take time to acclimate to the professional game and make a big leap forward in their second season after an up-and-down rookie year. Mercilus is a good example. As a rookie with the Texans in 2012, Mercilus had his moments. But he didn't become a full-time starter until his second year in the league.

Landry has the talent and potential to follow a similar path.