2017 Running Back Report

[PingPwng]

Alex Collins is a sophomore, you silly goose!

Ha, yeah. Le'Veon Bell isn't either . Just wanted to mention him because he and Jordan Howard looked woefully unspectacular to me on their college tape but are proving to be pretty good NFL assets and they both belong to the same group. Thought it was interesting and it's kind of an oversight in my tape-watching process it seems. Speaking of Jordan Howard, he's on pace for his 2nd 1,000 yard season this year so that will be interesting to watch going forward.

Howard crossed 1,000 today. What an awesome talent. Love watching him.

He's had a messed up shoulder all season as well. Imagine if he was healthy and being employed as a receiver out of the backfield? He's basically the offense right now. He's gonna be great next year, assuming Chicago supports Trubisky by getting him someone to throw to.

[Bot101]

You dont want Howard catching passes... Just enjoy him bowling between tackles.

[krombj19]

DD i know its early, but what do you think of Saquon Barkley

[Dynasty DeLorean]

You dont want Howard catching passes... Just enjoy him bowling between tackles.

lol yeah, he drops the ball a lot... and I don't think it's b/c of his shoulder.

DD i know its early, but what do you think of Saquon Barkley

Don't watch much college ball but from what I've seen I guess I'm with everyone else in that he looks pretty good.

[Bot101]

I hope theres some gems in the 2018 RB report. Ive got Barkley with the 1.01, but also have 2.01 and 2.04 that I hope to spend on guys that leaguemates might sleep on (Foreman from 2017).

[hockeyBjj]

Can't wait to see your 2018 report. I have the 1.6 and could use an RB. Early is easy, Barkely/Guicce/Chubb but then at 6 who you take of who's available really makes or breaks. I'm hearing some love for Love lately

[ravn88]

You dont want Howard catching passes... Just enjoy him bowling between tackles.

lol yeah, he drops the ball a lot... and I don't think it's b/c of his shoulder.

DD i know its early, but what do you think of Saquon Barkley

Don't watch much college ball but from what I've seen I guess I'm with everyone else in that he looks pretty good.

When have your reports from the previous years been ready ?

[IBall2]

When have your reports from the previous years been ready ?

DD usually does it a few weeks after the NFL draft. He needs the combine data and draft results to plug into his all mighty formula

[ravn88]

When have your reports from the previous years been ready ?

DD usually does it a few weeks after the NFL draft. He needs the combine data and draft results to plug into his all mighty formula

Thanks.. something to look forward to

[lukkynumber13]

Just looking back a year, how did Jeremy McNichols not make his way onto your report, DD?

I mean, kudos for avoiding him somehow, but he had decent size, great speed, great rushing production, and elite receiving numbers...

[Valhalla]

Just looking back a year, how did Jeremy McNichols not make his way onto your report, DD?

I mean, kudos for avoiding him somehow, but he had decent size, great speed, great rushing production, and elite receiving numbers...

Draft status is likely a big factor there. Team investment roughly equates to opportunity

[Dynasty DeLorean]

Just looking back a year, how did Jeremy McNichols not make his way onto your report, DD?

I mean, kudos for avoiding him somehow, but he had decent size, great speed, great rushing production, and elite receiving numbers...

Me thinks we don't share the same definitions of great and elite.

Valhalla is catching on. I'm really enjoying watching people begin to figure things out instead of blindly criticize (comment not directed towards anyone in particular).

[lukkynumber13]

Just looking back a year, how did Jeremy McNichols not make his way onto your report, DD?

I mean, kudos for avoiding him somehow, but he had decent size, great speed, great rushing production, and elite receiving numbers...

Me thinks we don't share the same definitions of great and elite.

He ran for over 3000 yards and 43 TDs during his 2 years starting.

He caught 88 balls for over 1000 yards and 11 TDs during his 2 years as a starter. That's definitely elite for college. A good 3-down back often only catches 20-25 passes in a season in college.

And then for speed, he ran 4.49. That's pretty rock solid for 214 lbs. Not elite speed, but very nice speed.

DD, please know I love what you do and respect the heck out of it. I'm just asking an honest question, and yes I was fooled by McNichols as I liked his tape too! But I'm definitely not hating on your report, just asking

[Cameron Giles]

Whatever the case may be, McNichols absolutely bombed his way out of potential relevance by getting cut as a rookie. He didn't understand an ounce of pass protection and couldn't learn a playbook.

Even if he was rated higher (and he was by RotoViz's RB Formula), numbers can't hold a player up who just doesn't get it.

[Dynasty DeLorean]

Just looking back a year, how did Jeremy McNichols not make his way onto your report, DD?

I mean, kudos for avoiding him somehow, but he had decent size, great speed, great rushing production, and elite receiving numbers...

Me thinks we don't share the same definitions of great and elite.

He ran for over 3000 yards and 43 TDs during his 2 years starting.

He caught 88 balls for over 1000 yards and 11 TDs during his 2 years as a starter. That's definitely elite for college. A good 3-down back often only catches 20-25 passes in a season in college.

And then for speed, he ran 4.49. That's pretty rock solid for 214 lbs. Not elite speed, but very nice speed.

DD, please know I love what you do and respect the heck out of it. I'm just asking an honest question, and yes I was fooled by McNichols as I liked his tape too! But I'm definitely not hating on your report, just asking

How do we reconcile the difference between a player who catches more balls in a pass-happy offense and a player who catches less balls in a run-centric offense? What if I told you that in his final collegiate season, Leonard Fournette (a guy whose receiving skills were heavily questioned during the draft process) actually had a higher College Target Share (extrapolated due to injury) than McNichols? How do we reconcile the difference between a person who runs a 4.49 at 214 lbs and a person who runs the same time at 240 lbs. Do we just check down 4.49 for both players and call it a day? I'm not mentioning these things in order to prove you're wrong per say, the point is there's more than one way to think about certain numbers other than simply as raw counting stats.

As for his tape, unfortunately I don't have anything written down for him. I do remember watching a few games and I believe he was trying to bounce a lot of stuff outside/running backwards but that could be wrong as my memory on him is fading at this point.