Various entities present a National Football League Rookie of the Year Award each season to the top rookie(s) in the National Football League (NFL). The NFL considers the (rookie) of the year awards by the Associated Press (AP) to be its official honor.[1] The AP awards and Pepsi's rookie of the year award are presented each year at the NFL Honors.
The Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year award is an annual award given since 2002 to the top rookie in the NFL regardless of position. The winner is selected by fans through an online voting process at NFL.com.
Every week during the NFL regular season, five finalists are chosen for the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week award, and the winner is determined by fan voting online. Those results are used to help determine the finalists for the Rookie of the Year award. Voting occurs throughout the postseason and concludes the week before the Super Bowl.[24] More than 350,000 votes were cast for the inaugural award in 2002,[25] 1.002 million votes in 2009, and more than 1.59 million votes in 2010.[26]
The Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA) Rookie of the Year awards have been given annually to an offensive and defensive rookie in the NFL since 1969, except in 1985. In 2013, PFWA began selecting an overall NFL rookie of the year in addition to its offensive and defensive honors.[35] The winners are chosen by Pro Football Weekly writers/editors and PFWA members.
The Sporting News NFL Rookie of the Year award is chosen annually by NFL players, coaches, and executives. There were 617 voters in 2010,[50] 632 voters in 2011,[51] and over 800 voters in 2012.[52]
United Press International (UPI) awarded an annual NFL Rookie of the Year award from 1955 to 1959 and two annual awards from 1960 to 1996. From 1960 to 1969 the awards went to a rookie from the NFL and American Football League (AFL), and after the AFL–NFL merger in 1970, the awards went to a rookie from the National Football Conference (NFC) and American Football Conference (AFC).
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The NEA NFL Rookie of the Year award was founded in 1964 by the Newspaper Enterprise Association and was created by Murray Olderman, the senior sports editor for the NEA. From 1971 through 1976 winners for both the American Football Conference and National Football Conference were chosen, except in 1974. The award was discontinued after the 1996 season. Winners were awarded the Bert Bell Memorial Trophy in honor of former NFL commissioner Bert Bell.
^"Dowler Named Rookie Of Year". Statesville Record And Landmark. United Press International. January 5, 1960. p. 8. Retrieved March 9, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^"Gail Cogdill Is Rookie of Year". The Yuma Daily Sun. United Press International. December 28, 1960. p. 5. Retrieved March 9, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^"Ronnie Bull Rookie of Year". Corvallis Gazette-Times. United Press International. December 28, 1962. p. 7. Retrieved March 9, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^"Bears' Gale Sayers Rookie Of The Year". The Brownsville Herald. United Press International. December 22, 1965. p. 13. Retrieved February 17, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^"Calvin Hill Rookie of Year In NFL". Valley Morning Star. United Press International. December 21, 1969. p. 19. Retrieved March 9, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^"Rice is the NFC rookie of the year". Ukiah Daily Journal. United Press International. January 8, 1986. p. 10. Retrieved June 14, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^Olderman, Murray (December 19, 1965). "Gale Sayers Wins Award". The Herald-Journal. Newspaper Enterprise Association. p. 5. Retrieved March 21, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.