Top 10 rookie seasons in the NFL since 2000

It’s only been a little over a month, and NFL fans are talking about which player has been having the better rookie season and who could be the early favorite for Rookie of the Year.

Coincidentally, the two favorites for Offensive ROTY just happen to hail from the same division. Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz and Dallas Cowboys QB Dak Prescott have both been nothing short of lights out (even in defeat) on the field. Both are racking up the passing yards, and heading into their respective games last Sunday, were the only rookies to throw 100 passes or more without an interception.

As it stands after five weeks of football, Wentz boasts a 103.5 QB rating, throwing for 1,007 yards, seven TDs and just a single pick. For Prescott, the interception line item still says zero on his sheet, but comes in with a 101.5 passer rating and four TDs. The Cowboys rookie is nearing a record set by Tom Brady for most passes thrown without an interception (162), currently sitting at 155 after Week 5.

While these two are record setters in their own right, we took a look at which NFL players (in any position) come close since the turn of the century to replicating the same sort of dominance in their first season as a pro.

Andrew Luck, Quarterback
Drafted: 2012 (Indianapolis Colts), No. 1 overall

Despite being the runner-up to eventual Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III (below), Andrew Luck's status as the frontrunner for 2012's No. 1 overall draft pick was never in doubt. As the starter for a Colts franchise moving on from Peyton Manning (and having just endured a 2-14 season helmed by Kerry Collins, Curtis Painter, and Dan Orlovsky), Luck finished with 4,374 yards (a rookie quarterback record) and 23 TDs, as he led the Colts to an 11-5 record and into the playoffs. His 11 wins as a rookie were the most for any quarterback drafted No. 1 overall.

Robert Griffin III, Quarterback
Drafted: 2012 (Washington Redskins), No. 2

It's hard to imagine that RG3 was viewed as the quarterback of the future for any team (and just one presidential election ago, at that), but after the Redskins gave up a bounty of draft picks to grab Griffin at No. 2 behind Luck in 2012, the former Heisman Trophy winner set the league aflame. In an season where the read-option was in vogue, Griffin added 815 yards and 7 TDs with his legs to go with the 3,200 yards and 20 TDs he had thrown for throughout the season. With a 20:5 TD-to-interception ratio, 65.6 percent completion rate and a propensity for turning mundane plays into must-watches, Griffin nabbed the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award before a gruesome injury in Washington's wild-card playoff loss to the Seahawks.

Adrian Peterson, Running back
Drafted: 2007 (Minnesota Vikings), No. 7

As the 2007 NFL season began, AD announced two things: his intention to win the Offensive Rookie of the Year award, and also his intent to rush for at least 1,300 yards. He would handily accomplish both, rushing for 1,341 yards and capturing the award after the season, while also averaging 5.6 yards per carry, the second best average in his whole career. Amazingly, two games contributed to much of his total rushing yardage and average YPC. The first, against the Chicago Bears, was a then-franchise record 224 yards on 20 carries. The second? Just the all-time single game rushing yard record, a blistering 296 yards on 30 carries, with 3 touchdowns to boot, in a home game against the San Diego Chargers on November 4, 2007.

Cam Newton, Quarterback
Drafted: 2011 (Carolina Panthers), No. 1

Though his rookie passing (4,051 yards) and rushing records (706)would fall the very next season to Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III, respectively, Cam Newton injected new life into a Panthers franchise coming off its worst season in a decade. The former Heisman Trophy and National Championship winner started off with a bang, becoming the first rookie to throw for over 400 yards in his first pro game in road loss to the Arizona Cardinals. Newton would follow that performance with another 400+ passing yards in another losing effort (this time to the defending champion Green Bay Packers), becoming the first rookie QB to throw for 400+ yards in consecutive games. The Panthers would eventually finish 6-10 and out of playoff contention, but Cam would set both the rookie passing and rushing records, as well as the most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback in a season (14).

Russell Wilson, Quarterback
Drafted: 2012 (Seattle Seahawks), Rd. 3, No. 75

If you could equate his season to a classroom setting, Wilson literally finished with an A+ rating (100.0 QBR) in his freshman year, throwing 26 TDs and leading Seattle to an 11-5 season and the second round of the playoffs.. Though overshadowed by Luck and RG3 that year, Wilson grew progressively better week-by-week, and eventually became the big play (through the air or with his legs) QB that we've come to know.

Ndamukong Suh, Defensive tackle 
Drafted: 2010 (Detroit Lions), No. 2

Listen to these numbers: 49 tackles, 10 sacks, one TD. There are NFL players who play for YEARS and won’t amass the numbers Suh posted in his first season. Suh would flash his immense talent during his rookie season, becoming the first Lions rookie to be selected to as a Pro Bowl starter since Barry Sanders and earning himself the Defensive Rookie of the Year award. Suh's rookie season would also see the start of a pattern of fines for on-field behavior, notching $27,500 for various penalties during the preseason and regular season.

Ben Roethlisberger, Quarterback
Drafted: 2004 (Pittsburgh Steelers), No. 11

Twelve years into his NFL career, Big Ben is an oldie but a goodie. He led the Steelers to the AFC Championship Game as a 22-year-old, fueled by an 13-0 run to start his rookie season (his 13 regular season wins and one postseason win set a record for most wins in a season for a rookie quarterback). He finished the season with 2,621 and 17 TDs, and, similar to most of the other players mentioned here, earned Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. And, oh yeah, he was just 22 years old, hailing from a small school (Miami-Ohio). Sound familiar (ahem, Carson Wentz)?

Matt Ryan, Quarterback
Drafted: 2008 (Atlanta Falcons), No. 3

When you possess a cannon for an arm, you have seasons like Ryan did in 2008 (or, for that matter, this season). He threw for 3,440 yards (the second QB to throw for 3,000+ yards in his rookie season after Peyton Manning), with a ridiculous 77.3 percent completion rate, and 16 TDs, leading Atlanta to an 11-5 record and earning himself Offensive ROTY honors. Ryan and Baltimore Ravens elite QB Joe Flacco became the first rookie QBs to lead their teams to the playoffs after starting all 16 regular season games.

Joe Flacco, Quarterback
Drafted: 2008 (Baltimore Ravens), No. 18

Like Wentz after and Roethlisberger before him, Flacco proved in his rookie season that you don’t need to come from a top school to dominate the NFL. Hailing from Delaware, an FCS program, Flacco led the Ravens to an 11-5 record and a playoff berth throwing f0r 2,971 yards and 14 TDs. His solid rookie season almost didn't come to be, as Flacco was behind Ravens incumbent starter Kyle Boller and former Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith (who was injured) on the depth chart. 

Odell Beckham, Jr., Wide receiver
Drafted: 2014 (New York Giants), No. 12 

In his first season as a pro, Beckham recorded 91 catches for 1,305 receiving yards and 12 TDs in only 12 games. Beckham tied Torry Holt for most games with 10+ receptions, 100+ yards, and 1 receiving TD, with four total on the year. He also won the 2014 Offensive ROTY award. All of this helped build a reputation for OBJ's case as one of the league's premier receivers (and, lest we forget, divas)

But really, any summation of OBJ's rookie season can be found in this video: