And The Offensive Rookie Of The Year Is..............

This year, the rookie class has been magnificent, to say the least.

There are many noble candidates for this award.

Is it true that Joe Flacco, Matt Forte and Chris Johnson have turned their respective offenses into contenders?

Yes it is.

If Matt Ryan won the award, would anyone complain?

No, nobody would.

This award goes usually to the one guy who comes in as a rookie, and makes an immediate impact, and his team often turns it around and wins games.  Although all the players previously mentioned have done just that, only one player was selected by a team that barely won one game last year.

He does not play running back, quarterback or wide receiver, you have likely forgot all about him.  You forgot about the record breaking contract he signed. You forgot about his two consensus First-Team All-American selections.

I am talking of course about Jake Long.

Last year, the Miami Dolphins were atrocious. They won one game last year, and were easily the worst team in the NFL.

He has quietly had a vast impact on this team.

Last year, the Dolphins gave up 42 sacks, that was the 10th most in the NFL.

Last year, they finished 24th in the NFL in passing. Throwing only 12 touchdowns.

Last Year they finished 23rd in rushing. Averaging 94.1 rushing yards per game.

Last year they were 26th in scoring.

The offense was a mess, they had Ronnie Brown tear his ACL, Trent Green go down for the year, Ricky Williams got injured, just after he obtained the job, Jesse Chatman filled in.  John Beck was a complete bust.

The team possessed two future defensive Hall of Famers, and team leaders, on their way out. The entire franchise was a wreck.

The offense was truly uncertain for next year. With no offensive line to even help, and Ronnie Brown's uncertainty for playing this year, they seemed doomed.  For a while it seemed as if next year they would have John Beck and Ricky Williams in their backfield.

Would they win one game again with those two?  Behind that offensive line, who knows?

Then they drafted Jake Long to anchor the offensive line for years to come.

So far, he has done just that.

This year they are on pace to give up only 30 sacks.  This has made a great contribution in their passing game, as they rank 7th in the NFL this year in Passing Yardage Per Game.

This year they average 106 YPG rushing, and are doing a great job with their "Wildcat" formation.  This year they have moved up to 20th in scoring.

Jake Long's affect on this team, has been felt.  He has played well at his position, and is clearly a great contributor to this new found offense.

Is it nice to have a Chad Pennington as your QB?

Surely.

Is it nice to have a healthy Ronnie Brown?

Most certainly.

But, all of us football people know you cannot run or pass without blocking, and that is exactly why they took Jake Long.  You can throw in as many stats as you want here. I could go on for some time about his impact just from a numbers perspective.

However, there is one big improvement, that has occurred due to all the imminent offensive improvements anchored by big Jake Long: the Dolphins, are 5-4 and are legit playoff contenders.

And with the team playing the likes of Oakland, St. Louis, Kansas City and the 49ers with their remaining schedule, we should get ready to see the Dolphins playing in January.