The 2019 NFL season is 70 days away, and as teams prepare and get their schemes in order, I have chosen my seven rookies who will impact their teams’ success the most this season.

Noah Fant-Iowa R:1 Pick 20 (Denver Broncos)

Noah Fant has superstar written all over him. Listed at 6-foot-4,249 pounds with a 4.5 in the 40-yard dash, and a vertical of 39.5 inches he will be a nightmare for opposing defenses for years to come. John Elway and company will be relying on Fant to pan out as they have drafted a tight end in three of the last four drafts. Unfortunately, those selections did not pan out like the Broncos would have liked. In the off-season, the Broncos made a trade for former Super Bowl-winning quarterback Joe Flacco and fortunately he has made his bread and butter targeting tight ends. In Flacco’s seven seasons he has had at least one tight end finish in the top five in catches on the team. In Fant’s last two years at Iowa, he was sensational by bringing in 69 catches for 1,013 yards along with 18 touchdowns. We all know how successful the 49ers offense was with George Kittle last year at tight end as he made the Pro-Bowl with his 88 catches, 1,300-plus yards receiving and 5 touchdowns. Well, the Broncos will be looking to duplicate that success with Fant.

Rock Ya-Sin-Temple R:2 Pick 34 (Indianapolis Colts)

The Indianapolis Colts are a piece or two away on the defensive side of the ball from being major Super Bowl contenders and their second-round draft pick Rock Ya-Sin is expected to come in and produce immediately. Ya-Sin has all the physical tools to be a very good corner in this league at 6-0, 192, with a 39.5 inch vertical and a 4.51 40-yard dash he has the length and speed to cover receivers and be a playmaker when the ball is in the air. What is most impressive is his strength as he had 18 reps at the combine which was 2nd among his position. One concern about Ya-Sin is that he is inexperienced against elite wide receivers as he only played one year at Temple because he transferred in from Presbyterian. In his one season at Temple, he played well as he had 47 total tackles, two interceptions, and 12 pass deflections. This shouldn’t scare Colts fans as their organization knows what it’s doing in the draft room. In last year’s draft, 9 of their 11 picks made contributions to teams, two of which were all pros in Quenton Nelson and Darius Leonard.

Hakeem Butler-Iowa State R:4 Pick 103 (Arizona Cardinals)

The Cardinals have had some major changes to their personnel this off-season. For starters, they hired a new head coach from Texas Tech in Kliff Kingsbury. They also got rid of their former first-round pick at quarterback in Josh Rosen to draft Oklahoma Sooner superstar Kyler Murray. Nonetheless, the Cardinals might have the steal of the Draft in Hakeem Butler. The 6-5 receiver is a phenomenal athlete as he ran a 4.48 in the 40-yard dash with a 36-inch vertical. Butler is your typical down-the-field threat. At Iowa State, we saw him make spectacular catches every Saturday. In 2018, he averaged 22.0 yards per catch, which was first in the Big 12 by more than four yards and was third-best in the FBS. The Cardinals are a perfect fit for Butler not just because Kingsbury is an offensive guru, but because he can learn from one of the best to do it at the wide receiver position in Larry Fitzgerald. Over Butler’s career as a Cyclone, he got better every year especially his last two as he combined for 101 catches, 2,015 yards, and 16 touchdowns. There is one red flag that Butler needs to improve and that drops as he had 19 of them in his last two seasons. However, being a student of the game and learning from Fitzgerald, I expect that won’t be an issue going forward.

Darnell Savage-Maryland R:1 Pick 21 (Green Bay Packers)

Smart, athletic, and instinctual are three ways to describe the safety the Green Bay Packers drafted in the first round. Savage is an experienced, versatile three-year starter from Maryland with excellent athletic ability. With a 4.36 40-yard dash he is able to diagnose where the ball is at all times and rarely gets fooled on play-action or misdirection plays. What I love most about him is he is a film room junky; he can study film and apply what he learns to field at a high level. As a starter for the Terrapins, he had 170 total tackles, nine tackles for loss, eight interceptions and two of them were returned for touchdowns. The most impressive stat about Savage is that he hasn’t given up a touchdown since 2016 in a bowl game against Boston College. Since that game, he has been targeted 94 times while allowing 0 touchdowns, intercepting seven passes and deflecting 11 passes. The Packers defense lacked turnovers, especially in the interception department. Green Bay only had seven INT’s last year and four of them came from HaHa Clinton-Dix who was traded to the Redskins mid-season. By drafting savage, expect the Packers to force a lot more turnovers going forward.

David Montgomery-Iowa State R:1 Pick 73 (Chicago Bears)

Another big steal of the draft was David Montgomery to the Chicago Bears. The former Iowa State Cyclone rushed for over 1,100 yards in his last two seasons along with double-digit touchdowns. Out of all the running backs in the draft, Montgomery will have the earliest success and the best career. Last season, the Bears had a dilemma with Jordan Howard as their primary running back. Although Howard was productive by rushing for over 1,100 yards in two of his three seasons in Chicago, he couldn’t catch and head coach Matt Nagy’s system relies on throwing the ball to running backs, especially with a young developing quarterback in Mitchell Trubisky. Well, Montgomery can do just that and more. At Iowa State, he caught 71 passes for 582 yards in his three-year career as a starter. In 2017, he was contacted at or behind the line of scrimmage more than any RB in the nation and still was tied for the national lead with 86 missed tackles. In 2018, he got even better as he led the country in missed tackles with 100. The former Cyclone is a very versatile runner with his uncanny juke moves, his ability to bounce off tacklers and always fall forward for extra yardage or his angry running style that punishes defenders by lowering his shoulder. For now, Nagy will have a running back by committee, but as time goes on Montgomery will emerge as the starter.

N’Keal Harry-Arizona State R:1 Pick 32 (New England Patriots)

There’s a reason why many NFL scouts had Harry as the best receiver in this class for over a year as he’s a polished route runner with size/athleticism and the ability to break tackles or make guys miss. In his three years as a starter at Arizona State, Harry caught 213 passes for 2,889 yards and 22 touchdowns. His stats are great, but what I find the most impressive is that not only is he a willing blocker, but he’s a great one. He would chase defensive backs all over the field. If I’m the Patriots, that’s the mentality I’d love my young receiver to have. Harry was the first receiver the Patriots drafted since 1996, so it’s clear the reigning Super Bowl champs are high on him. Another strength Harry has is his strong hands. He was tied for 2nd among NFL draft prospects with 17 contested catches, and his run after the catch. When targeted between 10-19 yards down the field, he posted a 5.68 yards per route which led to 17 first down plus touchdowns. Harry is the most complete receiver in this year’s rookie class, not to mention he came into the best situation as he has arguably the best quarterback of all time in Tom Brady throwing him the ball.

Nasir Adderley-Delaware R:2 Pick 60 (Los Angeles Chargers)

For two straight years, the Chargers have seen a guy they liked, but who was unlikely to still be available when it was their turn to pick, surprisingly fall to them. This year, Nasir Adderley from Delaware was there in the 2nd round at pick 60. Adderley is an all-over-the-field safety that can make plays from sideline to sideline. In his four-year career at Delaware, he had 264 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss with 22 passes deflected and 11 interceptions while returning one for a touchdown and forcing four fumbles. What helps him as a big-time playmaker is that he played corner for two years then switched to safety as a junior. In addition, he is a great athlete at 6-0 with a 39-inch vertical. He has the size and range to be a great playmaking safety for years to come. Not only is Adderly a tremendous talent but what I love the most about this pick is the fit. Last year, in Gus Bradley’s scheme, the Chargers had six defensive backs on the field for a league-high 584 snaps, which was 199 more snaps than the number two team in the Green Bay Packers. Meaning Adderly has a chance to make an immediate impact. The Chargers went through several safeties when Eric Weddle left and none of their other options panned out. Adderly is just the safety Bradley can build around to solidify their secondary. Look for the L.A. Chargers to have the best young safety tandem in the league for the long-term future in Adderly and Derwin James.