5 NFL Draft steals who already stole the show in their rookie debut

From Ashton Jeanty to Emeka Egbuka, some top NFL rookies had strong debuts on Sunday. However, there were also some standout performances from guys who weren't first-round picks back in April.

These under-the-radar rookies proved in Week 1 that they're better players than their original draft position might indicate, and that should have their teams — and their fan bases — feeling good going forward.

Here are five NFL rookies who already look like draft steals after Week 1.

RB Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Washington Commanders

BILL.

It's not often that the seventh-round rookie running back who the whole fantasy football community hype-trained to the point of exhaustion in the offseason actually goes out there and delivers in Week 1, but that's what we got out of Jacory Croskey-Merritt, who mostly just goes by "Bill."

We kind of knew we might be in for something on Sunday when inactives came out, as the Commanders made Chris Rodriguez Jr. a healthy scratch. Austin Ekeler wasn't going to have a 100 percent touch share, so surely this meant we were going to get something out of Bill.

And we did!

Croskey-Merritt had 10 carries for 82 yards and a touchdown in his NFL debut. While Ekeler served as the receiving back for the Commanders, the rookie had four more carries than the veteran, and this trend should be expected to continue going forward.

RB Dylan Sampson, Cleveland Browns

Maybe the Browns were right to draft a second running back this year.

While the Quinshon Judkins situation seems to be coming to a conclusion now that the team has finally signed him, Judkins was inactive on Sunday while Sampson served as the lead back.

His contributions on the ground could have gone better, as his 12 carries produced just 29 yards, but Sampson showcased what he can do as a receiver, catching a team-high eight passes for 64 yards.

Maybe Judkins will come in and take over the bulk of the rushing attempts, but Sampson proved he'll still have a role on passing downs at the very least.

CB Will Johnson, Arizona Cardinals

Let's turn our attention to the defensive side of the ball, where Cardinals rookie Will Johnson was stellar in his NFL debut.

Maybe a second-round pick shouldn't qualify as a steal, but when that pick is doing this kind of stuff, I'll allow it. Johnson looked like the best rookie defender on Sunday, and if he continues to combine his ability to defend passes with his ability to just absolutely demolish ball carriers, then a whole lot of teams are going to wish they drafted him in the first round.

TE Harold Fannin Jr., Cleveland Browns

Excuse me while I victory lap for a moment.

I did my MFA at Bowling Green, a little spot in the middle of a field about 30 minutes south of Toledo, where the only thing there is to do is go to one of the many bars in the small downtown or to, like, go walk around this really cool giant nature preserve called Wintergarden. Oh, and there's also Bowling Green football to watch, which seems to fluctuate between "okay" and "not okay" on a routine basis.

Harold Fannin Jr. has a chance to be BGSU's biggest football success story in a long, long time. After leading the FBS in receptions last season, Cleveland drafted Fannin despite already having David Njoku at tight end.

Well, Fannin went out there and led the Browns in targets in the opener, catching seven of the nine balls thrown his way for 63 yards. Njoku, meanwhile, had three fewer targets and turned them into three catches for 37 yards. The Browns got a steal in Fannin, who might still have work to do as a blocker but is already capable of being a very good receiver.

And hey, Joe Flacco not being awful sure helps!

S Billy Bowman, Atlanta Falcons

If you're a fan of rookies getting sacks, Week 1 was definitely not for you. Unless something happens on Monday night, not a single rookie defender had a solo sack, and just two had even a half sack.

One of those shouldn't be a surprise, because it was Abdul Carter. The other, though? Well, if I weren't writing this under a section titled by his name, then you probably wouldn't guess it was Bowman.

The former Oklahoma defensive back was a fourth-round selection by the Falcons, and he got to Baker Mayfield on the blitz while he was on the field as a slot corner.

It wasn't a great day for the Falcons defense as a whole, but the team has to feel like it got a steal out of Bowman.