Running Back

Fresno State

6-0 218

40 time: 4.41

Draft board overall prospect rank: #35

Draft board running back rank: #3

Overall rating: 81*

2/28/10: Matthews would have moved up anyway given Jonathan Dwyer’s stink bomb because the two are compared often because both are considered future feature backs. However, that’s not the only reason he’s moving up. A 4.41 40 at 6-0 218 turned a lot of heads. He’s a good pass catcher and a great pass blocker for his age and he also runs extremely well. He could go 28^th to San Diego because he has everything they look for in a back.

1/17/10: He’s a bit of a one hit wonder but with 1808 yards and 19 touchdowns on a 6.6 average, some teams are going to look past that like they did with former one hit wonders Donald Brown and Rashard Mendenhall, who both went in the first round. He runs a bit upright, but he has very refined pass blocking and pass catching abilities for his age and doesn’t fumble often. He has all the makings of a future feature back, though admittedly I’d like to see one more great season on his stat sheet just for him to prove that he can do it again and again, though you can’t really blame him because he was mostly a #2 back or goal line back throughout his first two years at Fresno State.

12/12/09: Preferably I like to see two good years out of a player, especially if he plays in a weaker conference, but one excellent year could be enough to shoot Matthews up to the first round like it did with Rashard Mendenhall in 2008 and Donald Brown in 2009. 

            11/27/09: Ryan Matthews is taking college football by storm this year by going from backup to Heisman Trophy candidate in one year. NFL scouts are also noticing him. I have my doubts about him because he’s only been doing this for one year, but that didn’t stop Rashard Mendenhall and Donald Brown from shooting into the first round in each of the last two respective years and Matthews could also go in the first round this year, if he decides to declare, which I believe he will because of the threat of a rookie salary cap in 2011. I think he has a lot of upside and I am giving him a 2^nd round grade for now just to be reserved on him because of his lack of experience. I prefer when a player has put together at least two good years in college before I call them a sure fire first round pick. There are also some concerns about his strength of competition playing for Fresno State. As for what I see out of him, he has a good combination of size and speed, but he runs too upright and isn’t as explosive as he could be for that reason. He is an extremely shifty runner and makes good cuts and has amazing vision and creativity. He would be a perfect fit for a zone blocking scheme for that reason. He has good hands out of the backfield. He doesn’t break as many tackles as he should at his size and he will fumble a lot because of his running style in the NFL. He needs to learn to protect the ball and lower his shoulders in the NFL. He blocks very well for a college running back and can be as close to an every down back as an rookie is in the NFL right away. He is the complete package, size, speed, good hands, and good blocking, but definitely has some things to work on.

NFL Comparison: Rashard Mendenhall