This running back class is full of talent and personalities now undergoing the next step in their football careers the NFL Draft. This class includes national champions like Josh Jacobs, award winners, walk-ons, and top recruits.
These are my running back rankings which I wanted to post before the draft and not on day three, but the draft won’t be affecting any of my rankings. By that I mean where guys that have been drafted landing won’t affect their ranking, my rankings will be based on talent alone and how I perceive each prospect. This running back ranking will be the only one that stands alone my next one will have every position group except Cornerbacks and safeties which will come later. I already made rankings for most position groups in my podcast earlier though so you can check those out on podbean.
10.Alexander Mattison (Boise State)
He wasn’t on my list before but now that I’ve watched film on him, he is now. He’s not a blazer but can explode through holes and Boise State relied on him in clutch situations late in games and he delivered. He has good vision and rarely gets tackled in the backfield. He leads with his shoulder and is pretty patient. He does need to play stronger which he can since he weighs 221 pounds. He can also improve at slipping in and out of space.
9. Justice Hill (Oklahoma State)
Hill ran the fastest 40 among the running backs and he played like the fastest back in this class. He’s also very agile and used that agility to the fullest avoiding so many in the open field and in the backfield with his twitchy cuts. Hill is more of an elusive speed back but has an edge and toughness to him as well and always fought against tackles to get a couple extra yards. He is small so he won’t be as durable as other backs and he’s a liability in pass protection. As fast as Hill is, he never really changes his speed when he hit’s the open field and that resulted in less huge runs than you’d expect. He only had 5 carries of more than 30 yards in 2018 despite being a guy who ran a 4.40 40 time.
8. Rodney Anderson (Oklahoma)
Anderson is a patient runner who uses his blockers and follows them well and is a capable pass catcher who could be an even greater receiving back in the NFL than his time in college. He struggles evading tackles in close space and can play a bit high, but he is a solid back.
7. Devin Singletary (Florida Atlantic)
I have dropped Singletary formerly having him as my fourth back, but I still like him a lot. He’s extremely intelligent on the field and lets plays develop. He understands the game so well going with the flow or knowing exactly what parts of the defense are weak. He ran a slow 40 but it wasn’t awful like Elijah Holyfield’s 40 which caused him to drop from my 2 to not in my top 10. He plays with great power and can block. He lacks a second gear to truly accelerate and he has bad hands to be a receiving back. Another flaw is he makes excessive cuts so unnecessary time-wasting moves in space.
6. Darrell Henderson (Memphis)
Henderson ran a slower 40 at the combine than expected running a 4.49 but he’s still faster and looks faster on the field. He’s an explosive runner who can break the “home run” play but he’s more physical than you would think and he’s a guy who can pass catch as well. He plays a bit high though and can play too fast because he doesn’t stack moves and he’s a bit impatient not lacking blocks develop at times.
5. Damien Harris (Alabama)
Harris is another player I’ve risen on since my last running back ranking. I think I was low on him in the past because I was much higher on his teammate Josh Jacobs, but I went back and watched more film on Harris. He’s got good speed he doesn’t try to do to much in space or run backwards to get more space he just churns forward and punishes guys. He also has soft hands so he can pass catch well and since he’s shared the backfield in Alabama, he has little wear and tear to him.
4. Mike Weber (Ohio State)
In my podcast I had him at nine but since then I’ve risen on this running back from Ohio State. Weber is strong, has great vision, solid speed, amazing balance and is one of the smartest running backs in this class. Whoever drafts this guy will get quite a steal.
3. Miles Sanders (Penn State)
Sanders didn’t come on to the scene until this year since he was behind current star running back of the New York Giants Saquon Barkley his first two years at Penn State. When Barkley left Penn State and went to the NFL Sanders finally got his chance and he shined. Sanders had 1274 rushing yard, 9 rushing touchdowns and 139 receiving yards. Sanders ran a 4.49 40 at the combine so he’s got good speed and sine he didn’t get to start until his third season his total carries is low which is good because running back is a punishing position and the less carries one has had in college usually means they can last a lot longer in the pros. He is fast but lacks a second gear and he does have a bit of a ball security issue, but I really like this prospect depending on where he goes, he should be an instant impact.
2. David Montgomery (Iowa State)
Montgomery is one of the safest players in this draft despite running a slow 40 but that’s fine plenty of running backs have succeeded with similar times like Kareem Hunt who ran a 4.62. Hunt is also the player that most analysts compare Montgomery to. Montgomery is an extremely patient runner who hasn’t had many explosive runs and could improve on making guys miss but he usually makes at least the first missed and his big frame is hard to bring down right away.
1. Josh Jacobs (University of Alabama)
He sat out the combine because of injury but injury is not a concern for him for teams intrigued by Jacobs. He came out of nowhere in this draft process but it’s understandable why. His film is electric he can run, catch, and block. He runs better routes than I thought he would and he is a physical runner who is almost impossible to bring down immediately. His pro day 40 wasn’t great but it’s not terrible either especially considering his play style isn’t one that requires speed. My one big knock on him is his ability to hit huge explosive chunk plays or home run plays .
(feature picture from USA Today)
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