Oddsmakers give Fields third-best chance to win NFL ROY

Former Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields was the ninth offensive player selected in the 2021 NFL Draft, but oddsmakers give him a better chance than most of those other eight to win the league’s Offensive Rookie of the Year award next season.

Fields, who was the fourth quarterback selected in the draft when he went No. 11 overall to the Chicago Bears on April 29, is listed with +700 odds to walk away with the honor next year per SportsBetting.ag –– better than all but two other 2021 draftees.

The only two players given a better chance to become the NFL’s next Offensive Rookie of the Year are No. 1 overall pick and former Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence, who was selected by former Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer with the Jacksonville Jaguars, and former South Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance, who went No. 3 overall to the San Francisco 49ers.

Lawrence, who split head-to-head meetings with Fields and the Buckeyes in the last two semifinal rounds of the College Football Playoff, leads the pack with +350 odds.

Lance is second to Lawrence with +650 odds to win the award under the tutelage of Kyle Shanahan, who visited Fields’ second Pro Day at Ohio State in person prior to the draft before deciding to go in a different direction with the 49ers’ first-round pick.

All six other offensive players that were selected prior to Fields in the draft were given worse odds to win the award, including No. 2 overall pick and former BYU quarterback Zach Wilson, who is tied for the sixth-best odds at +1000.

Atlanta Falcons’ tight end Kyle Pitts, who was taken No. 4 overall, also sits at +1000, and 5th, 6th and 10th picks Ja’Marr Chase, Jaylen Waddle and DeVonta Smith are listed at +800, +1800 and +1200, respectively.

One potential impediment to Fields’ chances at winning the award is that following the first day of the draft, Bears general manager Ryan Pace said that Andy Dalton would begin the season as the starter in Chicago.

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However, given that quarterbacks have Offensive Rookie of the Year in six of the past 11 seasons, Fields’ position alone helps in the odds department.

Fields is not the only Buckeye to make SportsBetting.ag’s list of 21 players with the best odds at the award though. Also making the cut was running back Trey Sermon, who was selected No. 88 overall in the third round of the draft by the 49ers.

Sermon, who set the Buckeyes’ all-time single-game rushing record last season, is listed with +4000 odds.

Although former Buckeyes have taken home the Defensive Rookie of the Year award in three of the past five seasons, with Chase Young, Nick Bosa and Joey Bosa all winning it from the defensive end position, no Ohio State player has won the offensive award since Eddie George in 1996.