#oroy

Offensive Rookie of the Year and Defensive Rookie of the Year conversations start before Week 1 now. This tier is the short list of players who are walking into real volume and real snaps.

The point is not who is “best” in a vacuum. It is who is landing in a situation that forces production. Touches, targets, pass rush reps, and immediate trust from coaches.

Saints Reason to Anticipate 2018

New Orleans Saints: Historic 2017 Rookie Class Should Get Better

The 2017 New Orleans Saints ranked tops in the NFL in DVOA, which is pretty amazing considering how heavily the Saints relied on their rookies.

It helped that their rookie class was one of the best in league history. They became the first team in half a century to possess both the Offensive (Alvin Kamara) and Defensive (Marshon Lattimore) Rookies of the Year, but it didn't stop there. First-round offensive tackle Ryan Ramczyk and second-round safety Marcus Williams also became tremendous assets as regular starters.

Headline from 2017:  One NFL Scout Believes Alvin Kamara is Overrated

Ever since the 2016 football season ended, former Vol running back Alvin Kamara’s draft stock has soared. Kamara has typically been pegged as a second-round draft pick, but some scouts and mock drafts have him being taken as high as the late first round.

One scout, however, isn’t sold on Kamara at all.

Greg Gabriel spent nine years as scouting director for the Chicago Bears and has over 30 years of experience in the scouting world. Gabriel now covers the NFL Draft for Pro Football Weekly and is an analyst for 670 The Score in Chicago. Without being prompted, Gabriel offered up his thoughts on who he believes to be the most overrated players in the upcoming NFL Draft:

Two of the most over rated players in this draft are Davis Webb and Alvin Kamara

- very avg run strength, not an inside runner. Limited. Good space player and receiver but that's it

Davis Webb played quarterback for Cal and has seen a similar rise in stock to Kamara. But it appears Gabriel isn’t buying in to the hype for either draft prospect.

Kamara finished his Tennessee career with 1,294 rushing yards on just 210 carries and caught 74 passes for 683 yards in 24 games. Kamara scored a combined 24 touchdowns while at Tennessee (16 rushing, 7 receiving, 1 punt return). Kamara also posted a 4.56 second 40-yard dash time at the NFL Combine and was the top performer among all running backs in the vertical and broad jump.