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My exact words were, "I can easily see him matching or beating Carriers' ten interceptions in his first year in the league." And the thread subject is just drafted Caleb Downs, who is expected to start day one at safety.Easily beat ten interceptions?
I looked it up. It’s been done 9 times since 1990 (his rookie season).
You are absolutely correct about the number of interceptions. That is not unique. It is not applicable to what I was saying. Here are the players who tied or exceeded the interception mark--along with when they tied or exceeded the interception mark during their career:
| Player | Season | Position |
| Champ Bailey | 3rd | Cornerback |
| Ronde Barber | 5th | Cornerback |
| Mark Carrier | 1st | Safety |
| Antonio Cromartie | 2nd | Cornerback |
| Anthony Henry | 1st | Cornerback |
| Xavien Howard | 5th | Cornerback |
| Ty Law | 11th | Cornerback |
| Deltha O'Neal | 6th | Cornerback |
| Asante Samuel | 4th | Cornerback |
| Trevon Diggs | 2nd | Cornerback |
No player played safety when they did the deed since 1990 besides Carrier. Additionally, Anthony Henry might have won defensive rookie of the year as a cornerback if not for Pittsburgh's Kendrell Bell that season. He would have joined a group of about five other cornerbacks since Carrier won it as a rookie safety.
Ball played linebacker. Within the position (e.g. MLB, ROLB, etc.) won defensive rookie of the year almost 20 times since 1990.
Interceptions did factor into Carrier winning DRoY as a rookie at safety. Not one single rookie has won the award as a safety since he did it. My assumption is Downs has a high probability of duplicating the feat. He is just that good. That was the basis of my earlier comment in a nutshell. I understood other players (for example Trevon Diggs) intercepted ten or more interceptions in a season since Carrier did.
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