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On February 6th, 2011 the New England Patriots’ legacy was preserved by just six points. Ben Roesthlisbeger and the Pittsburgh Steelers walked away in defeat on Super Bowl Sunday, and in turn ended any debate as to which franchise could lay claim to ti…
The 2009 Draft was interesting and we have the results to prove it. While it would have been a worthy task to grade the first rounders of the 2010 NFL Draft there just aren’t enough results to prove it.The 2009 NFL Draft featured several trades and a c…
February 28th will mark two full years since the New England Patriots sent quarterback Matt Cassel and linebacker Mike Vrabel to the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for the 33rd overall pick in the 2009 National Football League Draft.
New England select…
Rick Gosselin of The Dallas Morning News recently revealed that the 2009 NFL draft is shaping up to become one of the worst in recent history. Out of the 257 players selected, one-third have already been waived, traded, or retired.But the results fro…
Last year’s defensive rookie of the year, Houston Texans linebacker Brian Cushing has been suspended for the first four games for violating the league’s policy on performance enhancing drugs.
Buffalo Bills’ rookie safety Jairus Byrd made a strong case for the Pepsi Rookie of the Year, as he finished tied for the lead in the NFL with nine interceptions and finished second in the voting to Cushing.
The real defensive rookie of the year is Byrd who started only 11 games and played in 14, setting the franchise record with his nine interceptions. Later in the season, he was placed on IR after suffering a torn labrum in his hip, an injury believed to have been caused by overcompensating for his groin coming off of sports hernia surgery in the summer.
Jairus admits he was been hurting during the last eight games and also states that he has been playing at about 70 percent.
If this is Byrd playing at 70 percent, we better all get ready for the Byrd to take flight next season.
In a five game stretch this season, Byrd intercepted eight passes and also had three games with multiple picks. Byrd was a huge reason for Buffalo’s improved pass defense this year.
Byrd became only the second NFL player since 1970 to record an interception in five straight games.
In his first season, Jairus was selected to the 2010 Pro Bowl and was nominated for three Pepsi Rookie of the Week awards.
Byrd left the Oregon Ducks early for the NFL , and obviously it wasn’t a mistake.
He finished his college career with a total of 17 interceptions, and in 2008 was named to the All-Pac-10 conference first team and led the team with 19 pass breakups.
This Rookie of the Year candidate and Pro Bowl selection also has some strong roots to the NFL.
Byrd is the son of former NFL player Gill Byrd, who played for the San Diego Chargers and was named to the Pro Bowl twice during his 10-year career.
More important than records, Jairus Byrd is making a name for himself in the NFL.
With a number of years left in his career, opposing QBs are going to think differently about just flinging that ball to avoid a sack or taking that chance down the middle.
Instead, they are going to know that the Byrd is the word and is awaiting yet another interception.
Although Byrd has too much class to admit that he is the “actual” defensive rookie of the year it is known by us, the fans.
Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com
