Misgivings about Deuce Vaughn

[john van brocklin]

I watched a couple of games with Deuce Vaughn, and although he has some wiggle, and broke off some good runs in college, he also has an awful lot of plays where he gets stopped at the line of scrimmage. Due to his slight build, he gets swallowed up easily. I expect he will have an awful lot of carries in the NFL that go for zero yards - more than fans will be willing to tolerate.

He’s a great story, and I wish the kid well. But just based on their bodies of work to date, I have more trust that Ronald Jones will be a better back up to Pollard than Vaughn. Of course, I am MORE THAN WILLING to be wrong, but I don’t have a lot of hope that Vaughn will become a meaningful contributor in the Cowboys offense - at least not until he bulks up considerably. But even if he does, he still doesn’t have the break-away speed that you’d like to see in a backup gadget type RB.

Sorry to fans of Deuce, but that’s my honest opinion. I would have preferred picking Tucker out of Syracuse.

Legit concerns.
Maybe he can be a good return guy ?

 

[gimmesix]

I agree, it is about vision, quickness, and burst. I believe Deuce has all of them. Still, I am not jumping onboard the bus just yet. I want to see him in a few practices and preseason games against other NFL players. I see a role for him but it is going to be limited. I hope I am pleasantly surprised.

This write-up would indicate that he may have more speed than he's given credit for:

Reel Analytics, which used by a number of colleges in recruiting, including TCU, measures space position players like running backs, receivers, tight ends, linebackers and defensive backs. It give them a proprietary IGA Score derived from position-specific athleticism metrics extracted by video tracking technology. Each metric is weighted, contextualized by percentile rankings, and scored.
And not only was Vaughn’s score of 96.7 tops among all Cowboys drafted players, it was third among running backs, behind only Bijan Robinson (98.3) and Tank Bigsby (97.2), who were drafted in the first and third rounds by the Atlanta Falcons and Jacksonville Jaguars, respectively.
He was four spots ahead of Jahmyr Gibbs (92.1), who picked in the first round by the Detroit Lions.
“Deuce Vaughn is unique in two ways,” Yates said. “First, he has elite change of direction. His average change of direction time is under 0.3 seconds which is top 1% of 3,900 running backs in our database and the best in the 2023 draft class. Second, Vaughn has high-end breakaway speed. We clocked him at a max speed of nearly 22 mph in week 9 vs Oklahoma State.”

 

[CowboyRoy]

I am cautious about any 5-7th round pick, especially a 7th. Talking about them having a significant role is a big step up from them making the active roster

RB is a little different, but he is getting some big talk

Significant role? Not sure ive heard that.

 

[dsturgeon]

Significant role? Not sure ive heard that.

why are you not sure?

 

[CowboyRoy]

why are you not sure?

Cuz no one has said he will have one. No one!

 

[Nemesis4u]

Doubt this guy makes the team when your primary running back is a slasher type its almost impossible to carry a 5'5 running back as his backup.

 

[stilltheguru]

Jerry knew what he was doing drafting duece. 4 threads on the first page. Jerry wins again. And if duece actually balls in preseason

 

[dsturgeon]

Cuz no one has said he will have one. No one!

then it sounds like something to be sure about

 

[shabazz]

I think he’s gonna be a complete beast at pass protection and picking up the blitz

 

[Flamma]

Well crap you just ruined my evening. I don't watch college ball, so I've only seen highlights. Still how did he rack up so much yardage?

He's become my pet cat offensive player of this draft. 6th round diamond in the rough.

I'm not worrying about it. Any back can end up sucking. I also believe his success will largely depend on our offensive line and gameplan. How big and tall was Emmitt? Do you think he's the rushing leader today if he was drafted by the Jets?

If the line opens up holes for him, I'm sure he'll do just fine.

 

[BlindFaith]

This write-up would indicate that he may have more speed than he's given credit for:

I don't trust the reel analytics info. I tried finding out how they measure speed etc. Couldnt find anything.

Next Gen is what the NFL uses. They use GPS tracking. I guess I wasnt aware of the elaborate setup they have at each game.

Anyway, it doesn't pass the eyeball test. He gets tracked down alot. The guys catching him from behind must be world class sprinters.

 

[BlindFaith]

I think he’s gonna be a complete beast at pass protection and picking up the blitz

Beast or bust?

 

[Kwyn]

I watched a couple of games with Deuce Vaughn, and although he has some wiggle, and broke off some good runs in college, he also has an awful lot of plays where he gets stopped at the line of scrimmage. Due to his slight build, he gets swallowed up easily. I expect he will have an awful lot of carries in the NFL that go for zero yards - more than fans will be willing to tolerate.

He’s a great story, and I wish the kid well. But just based on their bodies of work to date, I have more trust that Ronald Jones will be a better back up to Pollard than Vaughn. Of course, I am MORE THAN WILLING to be wrong, but I don’t have a lot of hope that Vaughn will become a meaningful contributor in the Cowboys offense - at least not until he bulks up considerably. But even if he does, he still doesn’t have the break-away speed that you’d like to see in a backup gadget type RB.

Sorry to fans of Deuce, but that’s my honest opinion. I would have preferred picking Tucker out of Syracuse.

He was a sixth round pick. What exactly were you expecting? Walter Payton?

 

[GMO415]

I watched a couple of games with Deuce Vaughn, and although he has some wiggle, and broke off some good runs in college, he also has an awful lot of plays where he gets stopped at the line of scrimmage. Due to his slight build, he gets swallowed up easily. I expect he will have an awful lot of carries in the NFL that go for zero yards - more than fans will be willing to tolerate.

He’s a great story, and I wish the kid well. But just based on their bodies of work to date, I have more trust that Ronald Jones will be a better back up to Pollard than Vaughn. Of course, I am MORE THAN WILLING to be wrong, but I don’t have a lot of hope that Vaughn will become a meaningful contributor in the Cowboys offense - at least not until he bulks up considerably. But even if he does, he still doesn’t have the break-away speed that you’d like to see in a backup gadget type RB.

Sorry to fans of Deuce, but that’s my honest opinion. I would have preferred picking Tucker out of Syracuse.

Waiting for TC until then it doesn't matter.

 

[Rayman70]

Jerry knew what he was doing drafting duece. 4 threads on the first page. Jerry wins again. And if duece actually balls in preseason

 

[CowboysLakerBamaFan]

I watched a 35 minute highlight video of his efforts. I was highly impressed. Did a lot of damage against power 5 schools. The guy is small in stature but legit. It would be a great shame if the Cowboys don't figure out a way to get this guy involved in the offense...rushing and receiving.

He looked good in his Highlight Video?

Hmmmm.....must be really good

 

[TwistedL0g1k]

He was a sixth round pick. What exactly were you expecting? Walter Payton?

There's a lot of people on the board that seem to think he's the second coming! The hype for a late 6th is off the charts. Normally it would be rare for a player drafted this late to even make the team, especially a team with a decent roster like Dallas.

 

[viman96]

But like I said, I’m more than willing to be wrong.

Maybe try exercising patience for a rookie picked in the 6th round that has yet to attend his first NFL practice.

 

[Kwyn]

There's a lot of people on the board that seem to think he's the second coming! The hype for a late 6th is off the charts. Normally it would be rare for a player drafted this late to even make the team, especially a team with a decent roster like Dallas.

It’s just off season boredom combined with casual fans who don’t know better.

Best to not take anything seriously until we get to the preseason

 

[khiladi]

Feast or famine
Nothing wrong with that if there is as much of one as the other

Problem with Barkley's first few years is that he wasn't able to force defenses out of zone coverage. A big play here or there isn't going to systematically wear down a defense or force it to adjust.