Ashton Jeanty, Cam Ward Highlight NFL Rookie of the Year Odds Favorites

Player	Position
Abdul Carter	DE	+200
Jalon Walker	LB	+850
Travis Hunter	CB	+1000
Mykel Williams	DE	+1000
Mike Green	DE	+1400
Jihaad Campbell	LB	+1400
Mason Graham	DT	+1900
James Pearce	LB	+1900
Malaki Starks	S	+1900
Jahdae Barron	CB	+2100

Odds as of 7-7-2025.

Here is a look at opening NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year odds.

Abdul Carter opened as the betting favorite to win the prestigious award.

• Abdul Carter (+240)
• Jalon Walker (+550)
• Mason Graham (+750)
• Mykel Williams (+900)
• Travis Hunter (+1000)
• Shemar Stewart (+1200)
• Donovan Ezeiruaku (+1700)
• Mike Green (+1900)
• Jihaad Campbell (+2000)
• James Pearce Jr. (+2200)
• Walter Nolen (+2300)
• Malarki Starks (+2300)
• Will Johnson (+2300)
• Jahdae Barron (+2700)
• JT Tuimoloau (+2800)
• Nick Emmanowori (+4000)

NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year odds favorites

Abdul Carter (+200)

The Giants could have drafted All-World defensive end Micah Parsons four years ago.

Big Blue would not let Abdul Carter, a Parsons clone, get by them this year.

Carter recorded 12 sacks in his final season at Penn State.

Jalon Walker (+850)

Atlanta certainly addressed their need for a true pass rusher during the NFL Draft, as the Falcons landed Jalon Walker. 

The Georgia product totaled 6.5 sacks and 10.5 tackles for loss during his final college season.

NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year betting splits

Highest ticket percentage:
•    Travis Hunter 12.2%

Highest handle percentage:
•    Mason Graham 20.4%

Biggest liabilities:
•    Carson Schwesinger

All data courtesy of BetMGM.

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NFL Offensive ROY betting trends

• Of the last 21 winners of the NFL OROY Award, 18 were drafted in the first round.

• While quarterback is an extremely difficult position to excel at as a rookie, 11 of the last 21 OROY winners played the position, including four QBs that were selected first overall in the draft.

• Running backs have won four of the last 11 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Awards. However, in recent years when top rookie RBs have gone head-to-head against top QBs for OROY honors, they've often come out on the losing end. Ezekiel Elliott led the NFL in rushing in 2016 but lost the OROY to his teammate Dak Prescott, while Kyler Murray took home the hardware over Josh Jacobs in 2019.

• No offensive lineman has ever won the award despite recent linemen like Joe Thomas, Matt Kalil, Jack Conklin, Ryan Ramczyk, and Quenton Nelson all making the Pro Bowl in their first year.

NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year history

NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year winners by position

Bears legend Mike Ditka became the first — and so far only — tight end to win Offensive Rookie of the Year when he received the honor in 1961.

NFL Defensive ROY betting trends

• Of the last 35 winners of the NFL DROY Award, an incredible 32 were drafted in the first round. Of the three winners that weren't first-rounders (DeMeco Ryans, Kendrell Bell, and Darius Leonard), all were still selected within the Top-40 picks.

• Eight of the last 19 DROY winners played linebacker. Two others (Von Miller and Shawne Merriman) were listed at LB but would count as edge players in modern NFL defensive schemes. That said, that number is heavily inflated by four straight DROY-winning linebackers from 2006 to 2009. Over the last 11 years, only three LBs have taken home the award. 

• Four of the last nine DROY winners played college ball for Ohio State. Three of those (the Bosa brothers and Chase Young) were edge rushers. 

NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year history

A quick look at the NFL DROY winners since 2004, the position they played, and where they were drafted.

NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year winners by position

A safety hasn’t won NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year honors in over 20 years, dating back to when Mark Carrier (1990) and Erik McMillan (1988) won the award twice over a three-year span.