ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — After his 157-yard, two-touchdown rushing performance against the Bengals, running back Phillip Lindsay has been named AFC Offensive Player of the Week, the NFL announced Wednesday.
His 157 rushing yards were best in the NFL in Week 13, and his two rushing touchdowns tied for the league lead.
Lindsay, who received the award for the first time, is just the 10th undrafted rookie in NFL history to win the offensive or defensive award since it was initiated in 1984. He is the first undrafted rookie on offense to receive conference recognition since Green Bay's Samkon Gado won the award in 2005.
Only six other Broncos have won this conference honor during their rookie season. Teammates Von Miller (AFC Defensive Player of the Week; Week 11, 2011) and Justin Simmons (AFC Special Teams Player of the Week; Week 10, 2016) are also on the list.
Lindsay, though, is the first Broncos offensive rookie to win the award since Mike Anderson won it in back-to-back weeks in 2000.
No matter which stat you use to put the award in perspective, Lindsay's season is undeniably historic.
Consider the following:
- His 8.3-yard rushing average against the Bengals made him the first player in 11 years to average at least 7 yards per carry in three consecutive games. Lindsay is the first rookie to hit that mark since Jerome Bettis in 1993.
- He became the first Broncos rookie since Clinton Portis in 2002 to tally back-to-back 100-yard rushing games.
- He currently ranks fourth in the NFL in rushing — despite ranking 14th in carries — and has already passed Selvin Young for the most rushing yards by a Broncos undrafted rookie.
Lindsay is the third Broncos player to receive an AFC weekly conference honor this season. Miller was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week after Week 11, while Emmanuel Sanders was deemed AFC Offensive Player of the Week for his Week 7 performance.
You can vote for Lindsay to receive a number of other awards. To vote him to the Pro Bowl, **click here**. To vote him to as FedEx Ground Player of the Week, **click here**. To vote him as NFL rookie of the week, **click here**.
