Following the 2017 NFL season, 3rd-round pick Alvin Kamara won Offensive Rookie of the Year. Since then, every OROY has been a 1st-round pick.
OROY Favorites
Following the 2026 NFL Draft in April, first overall pick Fernando Mendoza and third overall pick Jeremiyah Love opened as the favorites to win the award this season. As the season progresses, Mendoza still hasn’t started for the Las Vegas Raiders, but Love sits second among the betting favorites. In first place is Tennessee Titans receiver Carnell Tate, and third is Cleveland Browns receiver Denzel Boston.
Tate, Love, and Boston have had good starts to their NFL careers. But a player drafted in the middle of the second round has slowly worked his way up the betting favorites list: Germie Bernard.
Germie Bernard Has Arrived
The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Bernard in the second round, 47th overall, out of the University of Alabama. Originally, the Steelers wanted to take Makai Lemon out of the University of Southern California, but the Philadelphia Eagles swooped in and traded for him, which was somewhat embarrassing for the Steelers organization.
Over six weeks, it seems the Steelers made the right choice, even if they didn’t mean to.
Currently, Bernard sits fourth in the OROY betting favorites, but he’s just beginning to take on a heavy snap load. In the Steelers’ first four games, Bernard caught seven passes on 11 targets. In Weeks 5 and 6, Aaron Rodgers targeted the rookie 21 times.
Bernard scored his first career touchdown in Week 6 overtime against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Bernard’s 11 catches break Juju Smith-Schuster’s Steelers single-game rookie record of nine catches from 2017. He was Pittsburgh’s offensive X-factor and got the game ball afterward.
Injuries Propel Bernard Into Lineup
The Steelers’ number two and three wide receivers (Michael Pittman Jr. and Roman Wilson) currently both sit on injured reserve. As a result, Bernard has been asked to step into the number two role, and he has delivered.
“I made the most of my opportunities,” Bernard said following Week 6’s win. “I did what I could for the team so we could have success.”
With Pittman Jr. and Wilson on injured reserve, the Steelers will be forced to play Bernard as the number two. This is until at least Week 10, when Pittman Jr. is eligible to return from IR. But this could be good news for the Steelers, as Bernard has been Pittsburgh’s second-best receiver this season behind DK Metcalf.
If Bernard keeps playing at the level he has the past two weeks, Pittman Jr. and Wilson might be fighting for the third spot on the Steelers receiver depth chart once they return.
Earning the Hall of Famer’s Trust
Rodgers trusts the rookie, and he’s proven productive when given the opportunity.
“There comes a time when the confidence starts to match the potential, and I think we’re reaching that time with Germie,” Rodgers said. “Very proud of him.”
Rodgers is, and has always been, tough on his teammates because he has high expectations for them. Hearing him praise Bernard says everything about his talent. The Steelers’ 42-year-old QB has reportedly pop-quizzed Bernard and other teammates a few times. Rodgers tries to catch them and to see who is most prepared. This did not work on Bernard, as he had all the right answers.
Furthermore, it is interesting to note the similarities Bernard and former Green Bay Packer Devante Adams share. Rodgers played a key role in developing Adams’ excellent NFL career and is currently one of Bernard’s main teachers.
Bernard for OROY?
It looks like Bernard should have the WR2 spot in Pittsburgh secured. If Bernard continues on his current trajectory, he could, and should, be a sleeper pick to win Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Bernard would be the first second-round pick to do so since Eddie Lacy won in 2013. He would be the first Steeler to win the award since Ben Roethlisberger did so in 2004 and the fifth in franchise history.
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