FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                      CONTACT:
NFL-68                    9/30/03                                                       BRENDAN MOYNIHAN, NFL, 212-450-2246
                                                                                                Moynihanb@nfl.com

DAVE DECECCO, PEPSI-COLA, 914-253-2655
            David.DeCecco@Pepsi.com

CARDINALS WR ANQUAN BOLDIN; COLTS S MICHAEL DOSS;

TEXANS WR ANDRE JOHNSON; LIONS WR CHARLES ROGERS &

VIKINGS DT KEVIN WILLIAMS

CANDIDATES FOR PEPSI NFL ROOKIE OF WEEK HONORS

Fans To Vote For Winner On NFL.com

Wide receiver ANQUAN BOLDIN of the Arizona Cardinals, safety MICHAEL DOSS of the Indianapolis Colts, wide receiver ANDRE JOHNSON of the Houston Texans, wide receiver CHARLES ROGERS of the Detroit Lions, and defensive tackle KEVIN WILLIAMS of the Minnesota Vikings are the finalists for PEPSI NFL ROOKIE OF THE WEEK honors for games played on September 28-29, the NFL announced today. 

Fans can vote for one of these five players on NFL.com from Tuesday morning until 9:00 AM ET Thursday to determine the PEPSI NFL ROOKIE OF THE WEEK.  The PEPSI NFL ROOKIE OF THE WEEK will be announced Thursday on NFL.com.

After the regular season, five players will be nominated for Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year honors.  Fans can vote for the winner on NFL.com throughout the month of January.  The winner will be announced at a press conference at Super Bowl XXXVIII in Houston.

A closer look at the finalists:

  • Arizona’s Anquan Boldin caught seven passes for 86 yards in the Cardinals’ 37-13 loss to St. Louis.  Boldin leads the NFL with 464 yards receiving and his 30 receptions are the most ever by a rookie in his first four games.
     
  • Indianapolis’ Michael Doss recorded eight tackles in the Colts’ 55-21 win over New Orleans. 
     
  • Houston’s Andre Johnson caught a team-high eight passes for 97 yards in the Texans’ 24-20 win over Jacksonville.  Johnson has 26 receptions for 346 yards, both ranking second for rookie receivers this season.
     
  • Detroit’s Charles Rogers caught a team-high four passes for 62 yards and a touchdown in the Lions’ 20-16 loss to Denver.  Rogers leads Detroit with 18 catches for 192 yards and three touchdowns this season.
     
  • Minnesota’s Kevin Williams recorded three tackles and 2.0 sacks in the Vikings’ 35-7 win over San Francisco.  Williams’ two sacks were the first of his career and came on back-to-back plays in the fourth quarter. 

This is Pepsi’s second year as the official soft drink sponsor of the NFL.