“Where’s the Highly Regarded No. 1 Pick?”: Fans Taunt Caleb Williams After He’s Snubbed From Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year Nominees

The NFL released its list of six finalists for the 2024 Pepsi Rookie of the Year award. Most of the selections were expected, barring a noticeable snub. One would have thought Chicago Bears QB Caleb Williams, the No. 1 overall pick, would make the top six — but no.

Instead, the list consists of Denver Broncos QB Bo Nix, Washington Commanders QB Jayden Daniels, Jacksonville Jaguars WR Brian Thomas Jr., New York Giants WR Malik Nabers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers RB Bucky Irving, and Las Vegas Raiders TE Brock Bowers.

There is no doubt that all six nominees more than deserved their spot in the top six. And, honestly, they all deserved it a lot more than Williams, who caught some more flak from fans upon the official finalist announcement.

“Where’s the highly regarded #1 pick?” wrote one fan. “Where is Caleb? Uhh…. probably in cancún with the rest of his team. Thats my guess, but idk for sure,” added another. 

Williams and the Bears started off the season very encouragingly, going 4-2 in their first six games. However, a successful game-winning Hail Mary by none other than the No. 2 pick, Jayden Daniels, against them in Week 8 marked the start of Chicago’s freefall. They dropped the following nine games.

Williams showed a lack of poise in the pocket at times (the 68 sacks he took led the league). Meanwhile, Daniels’ poise for the Washington Commanders has become his calling card in what promises to be an AP Rookie of the Year-winning campaign for the LSU alum.

Daniels is a shoo-in for OROY over Bowers and Nix

In the middle section of the season, Nix had a resurgence while Daniels was fading a bit. However, the Commanders’ signal caller bounced back from that lull with five straight wins to close out the regular season. He vindicated his supporters with an upset win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Wild Card round.

So, with Nix now out of the conversation, the two front-runners for AP OROY are Daniels and Bowers.

The Raiders TE broke one of the longest-standing records: Mike Ditka’s 60-year-old mark for single-season rookie receiving yards by a TE. He finished the year with 1,194 yards, ranking 16th all-time for a TE. Bowers also set the rookie record for receptions by a TE before surpassing the overall record, finishing with 112 to eclipse Puka Nacua’s 105 from the year prior.

Daniels, meanwhile, set the record for best rookie completion percentage. But that’s not the main reason he was a -20,000 odds favorite when the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year betting markets closed a couple of weeks ago (Daniels is also a massive favorite to win the NFL Pepsi Rookie of the Year award).

The main reason is that he led his team to 12 wins, their most in over 30 years. And he did so in dramatic fashion, finishing with four 4th-quarter comebacks, the 2nd-most ever by a rookie.

Daniels has done the impossible: made the Commanders fun again. He certainly deserves all the plaudits and acclaim for achieving such an unlikely feat.