rguido;1972530 said:
I have read many threads here where people say this is a deep draft for runningbacks. Now I havent seen many of them play so I want to field this question out to someone who has more insight. Are the RB's deep because their are many who can be good game changers, or are they just average and no one really stands out from the rest. So no matter who you choose you just hope they will stand out at the nfl level.
It seems like a really good group of running backs... some backs who were quite productive in college will still be looking for work in the third round... and some of 'em are likely to go on to have solid, productive NFL careers...
Darren McFadden, Rashard Mendenhall and Jon Stewart are sure first rounders, and would be in most years... problem is, they're all gonna be off the board before the Cowboys get a shot at them... on the next level, late first or second round type prospects, you have Chris Johnson, Felix Jones, Jamaal Charles, Ray Rice and Kevin Smith... all of them are likely to still be on the board at pick 28, except perhaps Jones, who would be 50-50 to still be on the board at pick 22, IMO...
This is not entirely bad news, though; Johnson showed at the combine that he really does have elite speed, and he's a dangerous kick returner... Charles is a favorite of mine, and not just because I'm a Horns fan (though that is a part of it)... midway through last season, I was quite disappointed in the lad, then the last 5 games of the season, he just went completely dominant... it was like he finally grew up... in those 5 games, he carried the ball 116 times, and gained 900 yards (7.8 yards per carry)... only once was he held under 170 yards rushing in that stretch, the Aggies held him to 92 yards on 17 carries, but he compensated by catching 4 passes for 81 yards... he caught a total of 9 passes for 120 yards in those 5 games, meaning he had 125 "touches" in those 5 games, and gained a total of 1020 yards, 204 yards per game... scored 9 TDs, too... and all of a sudden, the Horns were scoring an average of 41.4 points per game...
Perhaps it's unwise to get so worked up about his final 5 games of his college career, perhaps I should want to see this kind of production from him long-term... I mean, Julius Jones had himself a brilliant stretch playing for the Cowboys, but it didn't sustain itself, did it?? But I saw 3 of those final 5 games, and I saw him just explode... with his speed, I think he can do the same in the pros; once he gets into the secondary, he's a good bet to take it all the way...
Some scouts have compared Ray Rice to Emmitt, both in terms of their general physiques, and in their running style... Kevin Smith is another personal favorite of mine, especially now that he's run faster than anybody expected him to at the combine... I've seen a good bit of the video out there on this guy, and I'm telling you, if some team made him their feature back, put in the deep I formation, gave him a solid lead-blocking fullback, Smith could put up some impressive numbers... he reads his blocks, hits the holes, and runs with power...
Even in the third round, you have very good college backs like Tashard Choice (who the Cowboys have apparently shown some interest in), speedy Steve Slaton, Matt Forte... all told, there are 10 or 12 running backs who could wind up going in the first 100 picks, and a fairly high percentage of them will be at least semi-productive pros...
