Tomorrow marks the first Sunday of football that actually matters. For rookies, its marks the beginning of their journey to success. They’ll come up against some tough veterans each week, but for week one’s match ups, I wanted to look at a few rookies that could face each other across three games.
Rookie Match-Ups To Watch: Week One
The first game the comes to mind Philadelphia vs Cleveland. Eagles rookies Fletcher Cox and Vinny Curry will be charged with stopping Browns running back Trent Richardson should he manage to play. Meanwhile on the outside, fourth round rookie Brandon Boykin could see the field against fellow rookie and supplemental draft pick, receiver Josh Gordon. Of course, Gordon will be receiving passes from rookie quarterback Brandon Weeden, who Cox and Curry will be trying to hit, while Boykin will be trying to defend his passes. All in all it makes for a pretty intriguing rookie match-up.
Another match-up that looks to be good is in the Buccaneers vs Panthers game. two first round picks go head to head in Panthers linebacker Luke Kueckly will be looking to stop the rushing attempts of Bucs running back Doug Martin. That match-up could go a long way to determining the result of the game. The Bucs are looking to re-brand themselves with a run game behind Martin, and if Kueckly can put a stop to it early, the Bucs will be forced to pass and keep up with Cam Newton.
The final match-ups I have come in the Bills and Jets game. First round corner Stephon Gilmore could end up across from Jets receiver Stephen Hill. Gilmore has the size to counter that of Hill, but will he be able to keep up with his speed? In the same game we could see tackle Cordy Glenn go head to head with Quinton Coples, one of the highest rated pass rushers drafted back in April.
What rookie match ups interest you the most? Let me know in the comments below.
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