Running Back

Washington

5-11 215

Draft board overall prospect rank: #50

Draft board overall running back rank: #3

Overall rating: 76 (2^nd round)

40 time: 4.46

Games watched: Washington/Nebraska, Stanford/Washington

Positives

·         3 years of strong production (2009: 1113 yards and 5 touchdowns on 226 carries, 2010: 1415 yards and 9 touchdowns on 260 carries, 2011: 1488 yards and 12 touchdowns on 293 carries)

·         Consistent (100+ in 10 of 13 this season)

·         Strong, powerful back

·         Refuses to go down on first contact

·         Physical

·         Rarely tackled for a loss

·         Powers through tackles

·         Ran behind a poor offensive line

·         Good 40 (4.46)

·         Good pass catcher (78 catches in 3 years)

·         Durable workhorse back

·         Can carry a load

·         3 down back

·         Short yardage back

·         Good on the goal line

·         Rarely fumbles

·         Good pad level

·         Explosive

·         Good vision

·         Good north/south runner

·         Runs between the tackles well

Negatives

·         Not as fast as his 40 time

·         Only average speed

·         Some past injury problems (hasn’t had to miss time)

·         Some concerns about his weight and fitness at the Senior Bowl

·         Might have too much tread on his tires (799 career carries)

·         Not a great outside runner

·         Only average in space

·         Won’t make a lot of guys miss

·         Only average size (5-11 215)

·         Needs to develop as a pass protector

NFL Comparison: BenJarvus Green-Ellis

The way I see this running back class is this. Trent Richardson is the elite all-everything 3 down back. Doug Martin is a very good 3 down back. David Wilson and Lamar Miller are speed backs who will be above average in a tandem with another back, but probably can’t carry a load and play all 3 downs. Mid round guys like Bernard Pierce, Vick Ballard, Terrance Ganaway are solid power backs, while guys like Isaiah Pead, LaMichael James, Cyrus Gray, and Ronnie Hillman are speed backs.

Chris Polk, well he can be a 3 down back and carry a load, but he’s very underwhelming. He doesn’t have any huge holes in his game. He can pass catch and he’s not a bad pass protector for his age. He’s got good power and adequate speed and he never goes down on first contact. He’s not going to break a lot of big runs, but he’s going to almost always get positive yardage and he turns 2-3 yard carry to 4-5 yard carries. He can carry a load and he’s one of those backs who gets a lot of volume yardage. He’s one of those guys where you look at the league’s rushing yards leaders and you think “this guy is there?!” For that reason, and others, he reminds me of BenJarvus Green-Ellis.