My opinion on the RB's in this draft class after watching a lot of tape

[tm1119]

Since it's becoming more and more apparent that Murray won't be back I decided to watch a lot of tape on the RB's of this draft class. A brief synopsis of what I found out...all my personal opinion of course.

-Gurley and Gordon are legit...if 1 is there at 27 you take them and don't look back

-Ajayai is the clear cut #3 back in this class. He has some flaws but I think with some coaching he could be a stud. Very good trade back candidate

-STAY AWAY from the next tier of RB's....Duke Johnson, Ameer Abdullah, and Tevin Coleman- They all have serious flaws and I don't want any of them. Duke and Abdullah will probably find homes as change of pace guys, but that's not what we need. Coleman's running style scares me. Way too upright and doesn't appear to see holes as well as he should

- The real value guys= David Johnson, Jeremey Langford, and Buck Allen. All big, fast (Buck is only so, so but good enough) and are smart runners in my opinion. If we could get Johnson or Langford in the 3rd or Buck in the 4th it would be an absolute steal. These 3 are the type of guys you can get later in the draft that makes not paying big $ for RB's obvious.

- Potential late round steal= Malcolm Agnew from S. Illinois...this kid runs HARD. Hits the hole with a very good burst and its afraid to lower his shoulder and take on tacklers. Former Oregon St recruit who started for them as a true freshman. Injuries are a big concern with him as he's never been able to stay healthy, but I definitely think he's worth a shot late 6th/7th

 

[locked&loaded]

I actually agree with a lot of this. Especially your 'STAY AWAY' from group.

 

[big dog cowboy]

Good stuff I know you spent some time on this so thanks

 

[supercowboy8]

Wow total disagree with it all. Ajayi fumbles way to much. Coleman had such great visiin. Your scared of him getting hurt but you like Gurley who I think is way over rated.

Then you have to look at our scheme. Dallas likes inside zone runners. Gordon and Ajayi all like to bounce outside.

 

[xwalker]

Since it's becoming more and more apparent that Murray won't be back I decided to watch a lot of tape on the RB's of this draft class. A brief synopsis of what I found out...all my personal opinion of course.

-Gurley and Gordon are legit...if 1 is there at 27 you take them and don't look back

-Ajayai is the clear cut #3 back in this class. He has some flaws but I think with some coaching he could be a stud. Very good trade back candidate

-STAY AWAY from the next tier of RB's....Duke Johnson, Ameer Abdullah, and Tevin Coleman- They all have serious flaws and I don't want any of them. Duke and Abdullah will probably find homes as change of pace guys, but that's not what we need. Coleman's running style scares me. Way too upright and doesn't appear to see holes as well as he should

- The real value guys= David Johnson, Jeremey Langford, and Buck Allen. All big, fast (Buck is only so, so but good enough) and are smart runners in my opinion. If we could get Johnson or Langford in the 3rd or Buck in the 4th it would be an absolute steal. These 3 are the type of guys you can get later in the draft that makes not paying big $ for RB's obvious.

- Potential late round steal= Malcolm Agnew from S. Illinois...this kid runs HARD. Hits the hole with a very good burst and its afraid to lower his shoulder and take on tacklers. Former Oregon St recruit who started for them as a true freshman. Injuries are a big concern with him as he's never been able to stay healthy, but I definitely think he's worth a shot late 6th/7th

Don't overlook Mike Davis.

 

[brucekr]

Since it's becoming more and more apparent that Murray won't be back I decided to watch a lot of tape on the RB's of this draft class. A brief synopsis of what I found out...all my personal opinion of course.

-Gurley and Gordon are legit...if 1 is there at 27 you take them and don't look back

-Ajayai is the clear cut #3 back in this class. He has some flaws but I think with some coaching he could be a stud. Very good trade back candidate

-STAY AWAY from the next tier of RB's....Duke Johnson, Ameer Abdullah, and Tevin Coleman- They all have serious flaws and I don't want any of them. Duke and Abdullah will probably find homes as change of pace guys, but that's not what we need. Coleman's running style scares me. Way too upright and doesn't appear to see holes as well as he should

- The real value guys= David Johnson, Jeremey Langford, and Buck Allen. All big, fast (Buck is only so, so but good enough) and are smart runners in my opinion. If we could get Johnson or Langford in the 3rd or Buck in the 4th it would be an absolute steal. These 3 are the type of guys you can get later in the draft that makes not paying big $ for RB's obvious.

- Potential late round steal= Malcolm Agnew from S. Illinois...this kid runs HARD. Hits the hole with a very good burst and its afraid to lower his shoulder and take on tacklers. Former Oregon St recruit who started for them as a true freshman. Injuries are a big concern with him as he's never been able to stay healthy, but I definitely think he's worth a shot late 6th/7th

Malcolm Agnew is a name I haven't heard for many years. I loved his power when I saw him at Oregon State. I remember he was a chronic fumbler and had hamstring issues. I never heard why he left Oregon State, but it's awesome to hear his name in a draft thread.

 

[supercowboy8]

I like Langford or johnson but johnson stats scare me. Why couldn't he get more yards vs lower players?

 

[AzorAhai]

Thanks for the write up. Pretty much feel the same about all of the guys. I do like Abdullah, but not for what we need. He is extremely shifty and accelerates very fast. While Gurley and Gordon are the clear cut 1&2, IMO their is as big a gap between Gurley and Gordon as there is in Gordon and Ajayi.

 

[Gaede]

I see nothing wrong with Coleman's vision.

He is more.impressive than Ajayi, imo

 

[tm1119]

Don't overlook Mike Davis.

I don't mind him, but I'm just not sure he does anything special. Definitely strong and hits holes with conviction, but I'm not sure he has the speed/agility to be a difference maker. I guess it would depend on how the team really feels about Williams/Randle and if they could handle a full time platoon with Davis.

 

[reddyuta]

agree with most of it.I like both Gurley and Grdon but not sure i would draft wither in the first.the no 1 thing for me with a RB is vision and Gordon can hit the hole on most times as opposed to Murray who misses a lot.

 

[Alexander]

-STAY AWAY from the next tier of RB's....Duke Johnson, Ameer Abdullah, and Tevin Coleman- They all have serious flaws and I don't want any of them. Duke and Abdullah will probably find homes as change of pace guys, but that's not what we need. Coleman's running style scares me. Way too upright and doesn't appear to see holes as well as he should

They are role players and not the scheme fit nor workload fit we need. Shined up versions of Dunbar for the most part.

- The real value guys= David Johnson, Jeremey Langford, and Buck Allen. All big, fast (Buck is only so, so but good enough) and are smart runners in my opinion. If we could get Johnson or Langford in the 3rd or Buck in the 4th it would be an absolute steal. These 3 are the type of guys you can get later in the draft that makes not paying big $ for RB's obvious.

I like Johnson and Allen a lot, both are very very good receivers.

I do not care for Langford at all. To me, he looks extremely average and he lacks explosion and special qualities.

 

[xwalker]

I don't mind him, but I'm just not sure he does anything special. Definitely strong and hits holes with conviction, but I'm not sure he has the speed/agility to be a difference maker. I guess it would depend on how the team really feels about Williams/Randle and if they could handle a full time platoon with Davis.

Many of the other RBs get a lot of yardage before being touched and then go down easily on contact. They will have to run through contact in the NFL.

Davis had the 2nd best 10 yard time at the combine and runs with excellent balance through contact.

If he is available in the 3rd or 4th as projected that would be a steal.

The Cowboys might not want to wait until the 3rd to draft a RB, but in terms of rankings he should be on the list.

If they get Gurley in the 1st I would still consider Davis if available in the 4th. They would need options until Gurley is healthy.

 

[acer941]

Since it's becoming more and more apparent that Murray won't be back I decided to watch a lot of tape on the RB's of this draft class. A brief synopsis of what I found out...all my personal opinion of course.

-Gurley and Gordon are legit...if 1 is there at 27 you take them and don't look back

-Ajayai is the clear cut #3 back in this class. He has some flaws but I think with some coaching he could be a stud. Very good trade back candidate

-STAY AWAY from the next tier of RB's....Duke Johnson, Ameer Abdullah, and Tevin Coleman- They all have serious flaws and I don't want any of them. Duke and Abdullah will probably find homes as change of pace guys, but that's not what we need. Coleman's running style scares me. Way too upright and doesn't appear to see holes as well as he should

- The real value guys= David Johnson, Jeremey Langford, and Buck Allen. All big, fast (Buck is only so, so but good enough) and are smart runners in my opinion. If we could get Johnson or Langford in the 3rd or Buck in the 4th it would be an absolute steal. These 3 are the type of guys you can get later in the draft that makes not paying big $ for RB's obvious.

- Potential late round steal= Malcolm Agnew from S. Illinois...this kid runs HARD. Hits the hole with a very good burst and its afraid to lower his shoulder and take on tacklers. Former Oregon St recruit who started for them as a true freshman. Injuries are a big concern with him as he's never been able to stay healthy, but I definitely think he's worth a shot late 6th/7th

What do you think about T.J. Yeldon?

 

[1LoyalCowboyFan]

David Johnson goes 2nd to 3rd round

http://all22breakdown.com/updated-rb-explosion-chart/

 

[Doomsday101]

Many of the other RBs get a lot of yardage before being touched and then go down easily on contact. They will have to run through contact in the NFL.

Davis had the 2nd best 10 yard time at the combine and runs with excellent balance through contact.

If he is available in the 3rd or 4th as projected that would be a steal.

The Cowboys might not want to wait until the 3rd to draft a RB, but in terms of rankings he should be on the list.

If they get Gurley in the 1st I would still consider Davis if available in the 4th. They would need options until Gurley is healthy.

Tying up a 1st and 4rd on RB? I expect Dallas to make some move in FA on defense but I can't see Dallas passing up opportunities in the draft and not address defense.

 

[tm1119]

What do you think about T.J. Yeldon?

Solid but unspectacular. He looks stiff to me. If you go back and watch him in '12 in his freshman year he looked dynamic and great. Somewhere along the lines he went from to 210ish to 220ish and he looked a lot less explosive and shifty.

That and I just don't feel great about Bama RB's in general. Lacy is breaking that stereotype a little bit, but really isn't much to feel great about drafting a rb from there.

 

[1LoyalCowboyFan]

http://mweb.cbssports.com/nfl/draft...draft-fumble-rate-among-rb-prospects?v=1&vc=3

Gurley

 

[ccb04]

It's always interesting & appreciated to see how people's opinions vary regarding prospects.

All of the backs...even the top one's, of course come with some sort of con's/questions. Some examples:

- Gurley: his backup picked up almost right where he left off...returning from ACL injury
- Gordon: running behind a very good OL...history of Wisconsin backs in NFL
- Ajayi: fumbles, past maturity issues
- Coleman: somewhat upright style
- Abdullah: size, ball security

All of them also have talent & several pro's as well.

Aside from the consensus top 2, I like Tevin Coleman quite a bit. His style is a bit upright...but that was also mentioned about Murray when he came out. Interestingly, former Bears college scouting director Greg Gabriel (one of the guys that pushed hard for the Bears to draft Matt Forte), has Tevin Coleman ranked as the #1 back in the draft. His take via NFL.com.....
"My thinking is that if Coleman played behind the Wisconsin line he may have run for over 2500 yards. As it was, he ran for 2036 yards, a 7.5 average per carry, 15 touchdowns and 25 receptions," Gabriel wrote. "Coleman has a complete game. He can run with power between the tackles, is creative, and consistently gets yards after contact. He has the speed to turn the corner and is elusive in the open field. As a receiver, he is very reliable, runs good routes and has very good hands. Add to that the fact that he can already pass protect and is a dangerous kickoff returner."

My Dad is an IU alum, so I watched Coleman play a bit. Indiana's O-Line wasn't very good. And when Nate Sudfeld went down (who's pretty decent), their 3rd string Freshman QB started the remaining 6 games...in which he threw 1 TD vs. 4 Int's & completed 48.5% of his passes for just 515 yards. Yet, Coleman still kept producing. That's one of the aspects I like most about him.

 

[Zekeats]

I see nothing wrong with Coleman's vision.

He is more.impressive than Ajayi, imo

So true. I go in this order, injured or not:

1. Gordon
2. Gurley
3. Coleman
4. Abdullah
5. Ajayi