As we've covered, the Jacksonville Jaguars 2015 NFL Draft class has been praised across the board but one of the picks people were more critical of, T.J. Yeldon, has been pegged by some as a dark horse candidate to win offensive Rookie of the Year. Even at some sports books, such as Bovada, Yeldon has pretty good odds at the award.
Currently, Yeldon is 12/1 to win Rookie of the Year at Bovada, behind six other rookies including both quarterbacks and both running backs drafted ahead of him. Though, I will say I thought it was pretty weird that Todd Gurley is listed at 8/1 odds for OROY and he might not even be active for the first week of the season, as well as having Tre Mason in the same backfield, in the NFC West.
Regardless, those are still pretty good odds for Yeldon, who's likely to get the lion's share of carries in an offense that clearly is going to want to run the football.
Danny Kelly of Field Gulls and SB Nation points out Yeldon as a dark horse for the award.
Darkhorse: T.J. Yeldon
Gus Bradley desperately wants a run game -- it's part of his desired identity of toughness, it would help take pressure off of Blake Bortles in his sophomore season, and it would keep his defense off the field for longer stretches of time. With the addition of Yeldon in the second and offensive guard A.J. Cann in the third (also Jermy Parnell in free agency), don't be surprised to see Jacksonville's rush attempts per game (22 last year) skyrocket in 2015. If Yeldon can grab the starting job from Toby Gerhardt and Denard Robinson, he has a shot at putting up some solid numbers.
As Kelly notes, the Jaguars offensive line is completely revamped and could possibly have three new starters on opening day, barring injury.
The Jaguars struggled running the football last season, but with the additions on the offensive line and Yeldon, I would expect the team to be much better on the ground this season.