Von Miller: Why He's the NFL's Best Rookie, Not Cam Newton

After quarterback Cam Newton posted another huge statistical day in the Carolina Panthers loss to the Chicago Bears, throwing for 374 yards and a touchdown and rushing for two more scores, many pundits have already anointed the first overall pick in last April's draft the Rookie of the Year for 2011.

However, an argument can be made that the best rookie in the NFL plays on the other side of the ball a couple thousand miles west of Charlotte.

Denver Broncos outside linebacker Von Miller had a similarly strong day in Week 4 in Denver's loss to the Green Bay Packers, logging four solo tackles and sacking quarterback Aaron Rodgers twice, marking the third straight game in which Miller has recorded a sack and bringing the youngster from Texas A&M to four sacks on the year.

This isn't to say that Newton isn't a very talented player, as he obviously is. However, his stats have also been artificially inflated by both the Panthers playing from behind a great deal and by head coach Ron Rivera's puzzling lack of determination to establish the run even though he has a strong tandem of running backs in DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart.

Meanwhile Miller has stepped easily into an every-down role as the strong side linebacker in Denver, and with Elvis Dumervil sidelined he has emerged as the Broncos most reliable pass rusher even as he faces double teams regularly.

Quarterbacks may get all the glory, but a young beast of a pass rusher can be every bit as valuable to a NFL team as a signal caller (just ask Jacksonville, who couldn't sack potatoes). So, before you run to Newton's Camination as the National Football League's best rookie consider for a moment that the player selected just after him is every bit as good, and the case can be made that Von Miller is actually better.