Juan Thornhill, Mecole Hardman Land on PFWA All-Rookie Team

Hardman joins list of Chiefs' return specialists who have won spots on All-Rookie team in three of the past five seasons

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Chiefs rookies Juan Thornhill and Mecole Hardman earned postseason honors Tuesday with the Pro Football Writers of America naming them to their NFL All-Rookie team.

Thornhill earned a spot at safety alongside Green Bay's Darnell Savage. Hardman is kick returner on the rookie team, the same position he earned All-AFC honors for on Monday.

Thornhill finished the season with 57 combined tackles and three interceptions. He yielded a passer rating of just 69.9 on targets in his direction, tops for a safety in this year's rookie class. He's the first Chiefs defensive player to earn recognition on the team since cornerback Marcus Peters in 2016. 

Thornhill didn't get much of a chance to celebrate his inclusion on the All-Rookie team. He posted a photo on Instragam from Dallas, where he underwent surgery for a torn ACL.

Hardman ranked second in this year's rookie class with a 26.1-yard average on kick returns. He and Washington's Steven Sims were the only rookies to return a kick for a touchdown this season.

The Chiefs placed two rookies on the PFWA team for the first time 2017 when running back Kareem Hunt and kicker Harrison Butker made the squad. 

A Chiefs rookie has won a return specialist spot on the team in three of the past five seasons under special teams coordinator Dave Toub. De'Anthony Thomas earned recognition at punt returner in 2014 while Tremon Smith won the kick returner spot last season. Tyreek Hill earned three spots on the All-Rookie team in 2016 at kick returner, punt returner and special teams player.

2019 ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: DE Nick Bosa, San Francisco 49ers

2019 OFFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: RB Josh Jacobs, Oakland Raiders

2019 DEFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: DE Nick Bosa, San Francisco 49ers

2019 PFWA ALL-ROOKIE TEAM

Offense

QB – Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals
RB – Josh Jacobs, Oakland Raiders; Miles Sanders, Philadelphia Eagles
WR – A.J. Brown, Tennessee Titans; Terry McLaurin, Washington Redskins
TE – Noah Fant, Denver Broncos
C – Erik McCoy, New Orleans Saints
G – Elgton Jenkins, Green Bay Packers; Dalton Risner, Denver Broncos
T – Tytus Howard, Houston Texans; Jawaan Taylor, Jacksonville Jaguars

Defense

DL – Josh Allen, Jacksonville Jaguars; Nick Bosa, San Francisco 49ers; Dexter Lawrence, New York Giants; Ed Oliver, Buffalo Bills
LB – Devin Bush, Pittsburgh Steelers; Dre Greenlaw, San Francisco 49ers; Devin White, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
CB – Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, New Orleans Saints; Sean Murphy-Bunting, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
S – Darnell Savage, Green Bay Packers; Juan Thornhill, Kansas City Chiefs

Special Teams

PK – Austin Seibert, Cleveland Browns
P – Jamie Gillan, Cleveland Browns
KR – Mecole Hardman, Kansas City Chiefs
PR – Deonte Harris, New Orleans Saints
ST – Drue Tranquill, Los Angeles Chargers