The Offensive Rookie of the Year award, also known as OROTY, is given to the offensive rookie who balled out the most during their first year in the league. Oftentimes it goes to a quarterback but, given the competition there (or lack thereof), this year might be an exception.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans probably feel pretty confident that rookie wide receiver Emeka Egbuka can be the recipient of the award considering what he's done through the first month of the season. The Bucs' first-round pick out of Ohio State has compiled 18 catches for 282 yards and four touchdowns. He's certainly looked the part of a first-round receiver and the Bucs are happy to have him, especially with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin both missing time so early in the season.
Not everyone seems to agree that Egbuka is the runaway winner for OROTY, however. Bill Barnwell of ESPN listed his picks for key awards (with OROTY being one of them) just a quarter into the 2025 season and he did not have Egbuka as the winner of the offensive honor, though he was the runner-up for the award. The winner, at least according to Barnwell after the first four games, is Colts tight end Tyler Warren, claiming that "As a pass catcher, Warren has been even more efficient than Egbuka".
Tyler Warren might be what stands in Emeka Egbuka's way for OROTY
It's hard to get too angry at one person's opinion of an award that won't even be handed out for another four months but let's play devil's advocate anyway. Barnwell claims that Warren is the more "efficient" pass catcher but he has fewer receiving yards with 263 and hasn't scored a touchdown yet for the Colts. He has one more catch than Egbuka on the year.
One could argue that Warren has had done more than expected at his position while Egbuka has played about as well as people expected but why should that be held against Egbuka? "Hey sorry you're good, now you're not going to win this award" doesn't seem like sound logic here.
Don't get me wrong, Warren has been a beast for the 3-1 Colts but it feels a little strange to pick him as the early frontrunner for Offensive Rookie of the Year when Egbuka's numbers are better. Fortunately, there's still a lot of time left for Egbuka to prove why he should ultimately win the award.