Oct
At the quarter-point of the season, we have started to learn some things about many of the young players making their professional debuts. And with major injuries and plenty of scores to be had, the rookies were busy in Week 4.
Sunday proved to be full of surprises, as Felix Jones got zero touches in the Cowboys loss to Washington, and Darren McFadden took a back seat to Michael Bush as he attempted to play through a case of turf toe. Facing one of the league’s great run defenses, Chris Johnson managed to score his first and second career rushing touchdowns.
Then, on Sunday night breakout receiver DeSean Jackson finally found the end zone in a 24-20 loss to the Bears. On Monday night, we saw Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall go down for the year with a fractured shoulder during his first NFL start.
The NFL class of 2008 is making its presence felt across the board and we’ve taken notice. Check out our list of this year’s top 20 newcomers and be sure to read the notes as many of these guys are proving themselves worthy of fantasy starter status.
The top 20 rookies:
| Rk | Player, Team | Pos | Notes |
| 1. | Matt Forte, CHI | RB | 6th-most productive running back through first 4 weeks |
| 2. | Chris Johnson, TEN | RB | Nearly 400 all-purpose yards and 3 touchdowns thus far |
| 3. | DeSean Jackson, PHI | WR | Held onto ball crossing goal-line in Week 4 Philly loss |
| 4. | Jonathan Stewart, CAR | RB | 4 rushing TDs ranks T2nd among NFL running backs |
| 5. | Darren McFadden, OAK | RB | Soft Week 4 showing; look out for Michael Bush |
| 6. | Eddie Royal, DEN | WR | Bounced back, led Broncos with 109 yards in Week 4 |
| 7. | Steve Slaton, HOU | RB | Had 83 receiving yards last week; has TDs in 2 straight |
| 8. | Felix Jones, DAL | RB | Has to rebound from Week 4 when he got zero touches |
| 9. | Tim Hightower, ARI | RB | Playing role of goal-line vulture and doing it well |
| 10. | John Carlson, SEA | TE | Seahawks WRs returning to action could hurt productivity |
| 11. | Matt Ryan, ATL | QB | Must throw TD passes to be legit fantasy option |
| 12. | Joe Flacco, BAL | QB | Effecient, but doesn’t post fantasy-worthy stat-lines |
| 13. | Dustin Keller, NYJ | TE | Had TD for 2nd straight game during Favre’s clinic vs. ARI |
| 14. | Kevin Smith, DET | RB | Won’t start in Week 5; giving way to veteran Rudi Johnson |
| 15. | Ray Rice, BAL | RB | Great talent struggles for touches in crowded backfield |
| 16. | Jordy Nelson, GB | WR | Finding ways to produce as Pack’s running game struggles |
| 17. | James Hardy, BUF | WR | Great size and speed, but little production thus far |
| 18. | Devin Thomas, WAS | WR | QB Campbell looks good; may start to spread ball around |
| 19. | Dan Carpenter, MIA | K | Has only gotten two FG attempts through three games |
| 20. | Jamaal Charles, KC | RB | LJ’s re-emergence has limited Charles’ potential |