Phillip Lindsay didn¡¯t receive an invitation to the NFL
scouting combine and his name wasn¡¯t called during the draft.Motivated by the
snub
Youth Lamar
Jackson Jersey , he made history.The talented Denver Broncos running back
became the first undrafted offensive player selected for the Pro Bowl as a
rookie. He heads the list of undrafted rookies who¡¯ve made an impact this
season.¡°At one point, I was just trying to make the team,¡± Lindsay said. ¡°I was
hoping to do some (gunner) reps, some kick return and hopefully catch some balls
at punt return. When they gave me the news that I was going to the Pro Bowl, it
was just a real emotional moment.¡±Baltimore Ravens running back Gus Edwards,
Philadelphia Eagles running back Josh Adams, New England Patriots cornerback
J.C. Jackson and Minnesota Vikings cornerback Holton Hill have also made
significant contributions to their teams after 32 teams passed on them in the
draft.Lindsay signed with his hometown club after playing four seasons at
Colorado and was bold enough to seek permission from Hall of Famer Terrell Davis
to wear his old No. 30 jersey after he earned a spot on the Broncos. He had 71
yards rushing in his debut and 107 yards in his second game. Lindsay moved into
the starting lineup in Week 8 and had 1,037 yards, an average of 5.4 yards per
carry and nine touchdowns. He also had 35 catches for 241 yards and one
TD.Lindsay was injured in the Broncos¡¯ Week 16 loss to Oakland. He will miss the
regular-season finale against the Chargers and is expected to be out for the Pro
Bowl because of a right wrist injury, a person with knowledge of the MRI results
told The Associated Press.Lindsay is the third undrafted rookie with 1,000 yards
in a season, joining Dominic Rhodes (1,104 in 2001) and LeGarrette Blount (1,007
in 2010).¡°To be able to be elected to a Pro Bowl by your teammates, the people
you¡¯re playing against, the coaches, that means the world,¡± Lindsay said. ¡°That
means that they respect you. ¡ Nobody knew about me when I first got here, other
than I was little.¡±Lindsay ran for
2
Lamar Jackson
Men Jersey ,726 yards and 30 TDs in his final two seasons in college but
was passed over in the draft mainly because of his size ¡ª he¡¯s 5-foot-8. He had
offers from other teams but chose the Broncos so he could live in his parents¡¯
basement and save money.¡°His first day with us, he was the sixth halfback on the
depth chart. The sixth!¡± Broncos coach Vance Joseph said. ¡°Obviously, being a
rookie free agent. Didn¡¯t go to the combine. Wasn¡¯t drafted. ¡ He came in here
just trying to make our football team.¡±Here¡¯s a look at other undrafted rookies
making an impact:GUS EDWARDS: After playing three seasons at Miami and
transferring to Rutgers for his final year of eligibility, Edwards signed a
three-year contract with the Ravens in May. He began the season on the practice
squad, played his first game in October and got just 15 carries in his first
five games. Then Edwards had back-to-back 100-yard games as Lamar Jackson took
over for the injured Joe Flacco at quarterback, and the Ravens (9-6) turned into
a run-dominant offense and took the lead inthe AFC North. Edwards leads the team
with 642 yards, has a 5.1 average and two TDs. Jackson is right behind him with
605 yards on the ground. A Baltimore win Sunday earns it the AFC North
title.JOSH ADAMS: Despite running for 3,201 yards and 20 TDs in three seasons at
Notre Dame, Adams had to go the free-agent route. He signed with the Super Bowl
champions, earned a spot on the practice squad and made his NFL debut in Week 3.
Adams got his chance after starter Jay Ajayi went down for the season, and
Darren Sproles and Corey Clement were sidelined by injuries. He¡¯s emerged as the
leading rusher with 461 yards, has a 4.2 average and three TDs, helping the
Eagles (8-7) remain in the playoff chase.J.C. JACKSON: From Malcolm Butler to
James Develin, the Patriots have scored often with undrafted rookies. Jackson,
out of Florida Riverside Community College, is the latest to make a statement.
One of the players New England picked up to help plug the hole left following
Butler¡¯s offseason departure, Jackson has appeared in 12 games and started the
past four. The team¡¯s confidence in him has grown each week and he¡¯s performed
well, hauling in a pair of interceptions. He¡¯s been on the field for 89.3
percent of the snaps since December, and played every snap against the Bills.
Jackson drew primary coverage duty on Steelers receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and
held him to four catches for 40 yards on 10 targets in a Week 15 loss.HOLTON
HILL: Hill has played a lot on special teams and started two games for
Minnesota
Color
Rush Lamar Jackson Jersey , one each for regulars Xavier Rhodes and Trae
Waynes because of injuries. He has one interception and seven pass breakups and
has generally held up well in coverage when tested by a tough slate of opposing
quarterbacks: Aaron Rodgers twice, Tom Brady, Russell Wilson, Carson Wentz,
Jared Goff, and Matthew Stafford.ROBERT FOSTER: A wide receiver out of Alabama,
Foster has 23 catches for 520 yards and two TDs for the Bills. His average of
22.6 yards per catch leads the team.FRANKIE LUVU: The linebacker out of
Washington State has played in 13 games for the Jets and has three sacks.SHARIF
FINCH: A linebacker out of Temple, Finch has been a key player on both defense
and special teams for the Titans. Before injuring his shoulder in Week 15, he
had 20 tackles, 1½ sacks, two quarterback pressures and two tackles for loss. He
also has forced two fumbles and recovered another.POONA FORD: The defensive
tackle was the Big 12 defensive player of the year his senior year at Texas, but
his size (5-foot-11, 310) caused teams to shy away from him. He¡¯s played in 10
games for the Seahawks, including one start, and been strong in the run game.
NEW YORK (AP) ¡ª The chase to Atlanta is on.The regular season is over and there
are 12 teams remaining in the run to the Super Bowl.And at the top of the AP
Pro32 poll, the new year starts right where the previous one ended.The New
Orleans Saints, Los Angeles Rams and Chicago Bears, the top three seeds in the
NFC, retained their top three spots in the final AP Pro32 poll of the season.New
Orleans received 11 of the 12 first-place votes for 382 points in balloting
Wednesday by media members who regularly cover the NFL. New Orleans will open
the playoffs at home in the divisional round on
Sunday
Lamar
Jackson Jersey Boys , Jan 13.¡°The Saints lost in Week 1 and Week 17, both
at home,¡± said Ira Kaufman of Fox 13 in Tampa, Florida. ¡°In between, Drew Brees
and company established themselves as the team to beat in the Super Bowl
chase.¡±The Rams, who also finished 13-3 in the regular season, will start their
postseason at the Coliseum on Saturday, Jan. 12.The Bears will close wild-card
weekend when they host the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles on Sunday.The
next six spots in the poll are all taken by the AFC¡¯s playoffs teams.The Chiefs,
who have the AFC¡¯s top seed, are No. 4. Kansas City, which received the
remaining first-place vote ¡ª from John Czarnecki of Fox Sports ¡ª has won the AFC
West for three consecutive seasons.Patrick Mahomes, who finished with 5,097
yards and 50 TD passes, will try to get Kansas City its first home playoff win
since the 1993 season.¡°MVP front-runner Patrick Mahomes finished a brilliant
first season as a starter with 50 touchdown passes,¡± said Newsday¡¯s Bob Glauber.
¡°With home-field advantage in the AFC playoffs, is a Super Bowl berth next?¡±The
Los Angeles Chargers and New England Patriots finished in a tie at No. 5 in the
poll.The Patriots, who won the AFC East for the 10th straight season and 15th
time in the past 16 seasons, are the No. 2 seed in the AFC. They are trying to
reach their ninth Super Bowl in the Bill Belichick-Tom Brady era. They are also
trying to become the first team since the 1990s Buffalo Bills to return to the
Super Bowl after losing it the previous season, and the first since the 1992
Bills to make a third successive trip to the big game.The
Chargers
Cheap
Lamar Jackson Jersey , despite finishing with the same record as the
Chiefs at 12-4, lost the tiebreaker and are the No. 5 seed in the AFC. They will
head to Baltimore to face the AFC North champion Ravens on Sunday. The Ravens
are No. 9 in the poll.AFC South rivals Houston and Indianapolis are Nos. 7 and 8
in the poll. Those teams will open the postseason in Houston on Saturday when
they meet for the third time after splitting their previous meetings.¡°Just wish
they had another WR,¡± Czarnecki said of the Texans. Houston¡¯s DeAndre Hopkins
finished second in the NFL with 1,572 yards, but the depth took a hit when
Demaryius Thomas was lost for the season with an Achilles tendon injury.Seattle
and Dallas, who meet Saturday night in Texas, are 10th and 11th in the poll. The
Seahawks and Cowboys both finished 10-6. They met in Seattle in Week 3, when the
Seahawks won 24-13.The team that made the biggest climb from the first poll,
which was released before the season started, was the Bears, who started out at
No. 28 and finished at No. 3. And the team that had the biggest drop was the
Jacksonville Jaguars, who began at No. 7 and ended up at No. 28.The Arizona
Cardinals, who finished with the worst record in the NFL at 3-13 and have the
No. 1 pick in April¡¯s draft, were a unanimous choice for last place in the
poll.