2018 RB rookie discussion

[wildabeast49]

Wadley came in tiny at senior bowl. Sub 190, tiny arms and is getting awful reports on drills.

[James McGhee]

Who appear to be the best pass-catching backs in this class?

Sony Michel and Akrum Wadley are the 2 that I like most as far as receivers

Ito Smith

[darewood11]

Who appear to be the best pass-catching backs in this class?

Sony Michel and Akrum Wadley are the 2 that I like most as far as receivers

Good to know - thank you.

John Kelly I think is also very underrated and can catch passes

[darewood11]

I live in Iowa and have seen a lot of wadleyand I think he is much underrated. Depending on landing spot he could be a big sleeper

Nice! My dad grew up in Des Moines & Cedar Rapids, and is a DIEHARD Hawkeye fan. I didn't follow his footsteps in terms of being a superfan, but I certainly root for them and I love following the top prospects. Been to Kinnick many times.

Nice!

[darewood11]

Wadley came in tiny at senior bowl. Sub 190, tiny arms and is getting awful reports on drills.

I've watched him play and I believe he's a very capable passing down back at the very least.

[James McGhee]

I've watched tape on 10 guys so far and this is how I'm ranking them based on what I've seen. Disclaimer: I do not claim to be an expert. Just my opinion based on what I've seen, posted for the purpose of continuing and spurring conversation regarding the upcoming rookie RBs.

1. Barkley
2. Guice
3. Michel
4. Jones II
5. Ballage
6. Smith
7. Penny
8. Chubb
9. Johnson
10. Wadley

Couple notes:
- I just don't see Chubb being anything special in the NFL. He looked pedestrian in '17. I think he's being valued too highly based on pre-injury memories of greatness and that people are reaching for RBs early and often after the '17 class.
- Ballage has some flaws and inconsistencies but the upside is huge. He could be the a 3-down workhorse. Also, he could be the next Christine Michael.
- Ito Smith is going to be a steal in upcoming rookie drafts. I see mocks with him not going in three rounds. This is a mistake. Watch the tape.

[Bot101]

I've watched tape on 10 guys so far and this is how I'm ranking them based on what I've seen. Disclaimer: I do not claim to be an expert. Just my opinion based on what I've seen, posted for the purpose of continuing and spurring conversation regarding the upcoming rookie RBs.

1. Barkley
2. Guice
3. Michel
4. Jones II
5. Ballage
6. Smith
7. Penny
8. Chubb
9. Johnson
10. Wadley

Couple notes:
- I just don't see Chubb being anything special in the NFL. He looked pedestrian in '17. I think he's being valued too highly based on pre-injury memories of greatness and that people are reaching for RBs early and often after the '17 class.
- Ballage has some flaws and inconsistencies but the upside is huge. He could be the a 3-down workhorse. Also, he could be the next Christine Michael.
- Ito Smith is going to be a steal in upcoming rookie drafts. I see mocks with him not going in three rounds. This is a mistake. Watch the tape.

I like this list. Not because I personally agree with every individual ranking, but rather you're not letting name value or other opinions affect what you feel about a player. I am also much lower on Chubb than where I see him going.

[cazzie33]

Not a Chubby chaser here either but in the right situation I would pick him to have good if not great success.

I think he would have done far more than Perine did with the same opportunity in D.C. in that offense. More than Fat Rob too who was pretty successful in '16 . In Dallas he could be a better option than Alf who looked very good at times. Give him an above average line and he can do damage. Just not a big creator on his own like someone who can usually make the first guy miss. But lookout once he gets to rollin' downhill.

Not a fan of Ballage as he just doesn't seem to have a feel for the game. I guess he could be this year's Chris Carson. Judge Ito to be coming off the bench like Cohen did is my verdict on the Screamin' Eagle. Probably won't have him as high as five or six but @ ten he's a value.

There's a sleeper that I'd rank @ #7 that didn't make your list.

[hankmurphy]

Any thoughts on Martez Carter? I think he looks like a great flier, but I'm very inexperienced when it comes to evaluating college players.

[James McGhee]

Not a Chubby chaser here either but in the right situation I would pick him to have good if not great success.

I think he would have done far more than Perine did with the same opportunity in D.C. in that offense. More than Fat Rob too who was pretty successful in '16 . In Dallas he could be a better option than Alf who looked very good at times. Give him an above average line and he can do damage. Just not a big creator on his own like someone who can usually make the first guy miss. But lookout once he gets to rollin' downhill.

Not a fan of Ballage as he just doesn't seem to have a feel for the game. I guess he could be this year's Chris Carson. Judge Ito to be coming off the bench like Cohen did is my verdict on the Screamin' Eagle. Probably won't have him as high as five or six but @ ten he's a value.

There's a sleeper that I'd rank @ #7 that didn't make your list.

Yeah - I haven't watched tape on anyone else yet. But I'm working my way around to them all hopefully.

I like Smith more than Cohen as a more regular producer because he has three inches and twenty pounds on Cohen.

Sleeper?! Do tell!

[James McGhee]

Not a Chubby chaser here either but in the right situation I would pick him to have good if not great success.

I think he would have done far more than Perine did with the same opportunity in D.C. in that offense. More than Fat Rob too who was pretty successful in '16 . In Dallas he could be a better option than Alf who looked very good at times. Give him an above average line and he can do damage. Just not a big creator on his own like someone who can usually make the first guy miss. But lookout once he gets to rollin' downhill.

Not a fan of Ballage as he just doesn't seem to have a feel for the game. I guess he could be this year's Chris Carson. Judge Ito to be coming off the bench like Cohen did is my verdict on the Screamin' Eagle. Probably won't have him as high as five or six but @ ten he's a value.

There's a sleeper that I'd rank @ #7 that didn't make your list.

This is what I thought when I watched his tape. He needs a good line to be successful. Though, I admit, that can be said of a lot of RBs.

[kris_kapsner]

I know Chubb isn't back to his old self yet...may never be. But, sometimes knee injuries take a lot of time to fully heal from. We've seen some fantastic prospects never become great NFL backs due to those injuries. Chubb may be one of them.

Yet, I'll say this. He was arguably the top RB prospect his age back in 2015 when he took over for Todd Gurley in the Georgia backfield and he made those fans forget about the "good ol' days of Gurley" immediately upon taking the field.

Chubb may not have his speed that he had pre-injury when he was giving Barkley a run for the 1.1 pick. But, he has all the other tools still. Vision and feel for the game doesn't go away and that's still there. He still looked like a beast this year to me. Not as explosive. But still a beast.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and predict a long and prosperous career for Chubb.

Remember this: Frank Gore was the leading rusher and Willis McGahee was his back up when he went down to a knee injury in 2002. Then, he came back from injury and tore his ACL again, for the second year in a row. He went back to college for one more year before entering the draft. Gore only ran a 4.55 40 yard dash. He didn't blow anyone away with his speed then. Yet, he put up one of the best careers in NFL history.

So, I'm not saying that Chubb is going to be a starting fantasy player for you for the next 13 years like Gore was, well, 12 years straight after his rookie year. No, I'm not saying that. But, it's a cautionary tale about writing off a RB who was one of the best prospects in the country and lost his speed and explosiveness to a knee injury.

Chubb has all the tools of a great RB at this point other than the long speed. I'm going to be very curious to see his numbers from the combine. But, even if he runs in the 4.5's, I won't be worried about drafting him. Ingram ran in the 4.5's and was still the 1.1 pick in rookie drafts. Chubb has the feel for the game that you look for in a RB.

[hjernazian]

Not a Chubby chaser here either but in the right situation I would pick him to have good if not great success.

I think he would have done far more than Perine did with the same opportunity in D.C. in that offense. More than Fat Rob too who was pretty successful in '16 . In Dallas he could be a better option than Alf who looked very good at times. Give him an above average line and he can do damage. Just not a big creator on his own like someone who can usually make the first guy miss. But lookout once he gets to rollin' downhill.

Not a fan of Ballage as he just doesn't seem to have a feel for the game. I guess he could be this year's Chris Carson. Judge Ito to be coming off the bench like Cohen did is my verdict on the Screamin' Eagle. Probably won't have him as high as five or six but @ ten he's a value.

There's a sleeper that I'd rank @ #7 that didn't make your list.

who's your sleeper and why? can't leave us hanging like that there... i'm drafting at 2.05 with my first pick and looking for all kinds of sleeper talent to drop there.

[hjernazian]

I know Chubb isn't back to his old self yet...may never be. But, sometimes knee injuries take a lot of time to fully heal from. We've seen some fantastic prospects never become great NFL backs due to those injuries. Chubb may be one of them.

Yet, I'll say this. He was arguably the top RB prospect his age back in 2015 when he took over for Todd Gurley in the Georgia backfield and he made those fans forget about the "good ol' days of Gurley" immediately upon taking the field.

Chubb may not have his speed that he had pre-injury when he was giving Barkley a run for the 1.1 pick. But, he has all the other tools still. Vision and feel for the game doesn't go away and that's still there. He still looked like a beast this year to me. Not as explosive. But still a beast.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and predict a long and prosperous career for Chubb.

Remember this: Frank Gore was the leading rusher and Willis McGahee was his back up when he went down to a knee injury in 2002. Then, he came back from injury and tore his ACL again, for the second year in a row. He went back to college for one more year before entering the draft. Gore only ran a 4.55 40 yard dash. He didn't blow anyone away with his speed then. Yet, he put up one of the best careers in NFL history.

So, I'm not saying that Chubb is going to be a starting fantasy player for you for the next 13 years like Gore was, well, 12 years straight after his rookie year. No, I'm not saying that. But, it's a cautionary tale about writing off a RB who was one of the best prospects in the country and lost his speed and explosiveness to a knee injury.

Chubb has all the tools of a great RB at this point other than the long speed. I'm going to be very curious to see his numbers from the combine. But, even if he runs in the 4.5's, I won't be worried about drafting him. Ingram ran in the 4.5's and was still the 1.1 pick in rookie drafts. Chubb has the feel for the game that you look for in a RB.

fair argument, but with his rookie ADP do you risk a mid-first round pick on him? or do you move that pick for a solidified talent is the real question, IMO. Like you, watched Chubb and am an big believer, but had a chance to package that mid-to-late first for J. Landry, and I took it in a heartbeat. IMO, you don't really gamble with injury-plagued first rounders, DEFINITELY in the second and out, but not in the first.

[hjernazian]

I've watched tape on 10 guys so far and this is how I'm ranking them based on what I've seen. Disclaimer: I do not claim to be an expert. Just my opinion based on what I've seen, posted for the purpose of continuing and spurring conversation regarding the upcoming rookie RBs.

1. Barkley
2. Guice
3. Michel
4. Jones II
5. Ballage
6. Smith
7. Penny
8. Chubb
9. Johnson
10. Wadley

Couple notes:
- I just don't see Chubb being anything special in the NFL. He looked pedestrian in '17. I think he's being valued too highly based on pre-injury memories of greatness and that people are reaching for RBs early and often after the '17 class.
- Ballage has some flaws and inconsistencies but the upside is huge. He could be the a 3-down workhorse. Also, he could be the next Christine Michael.
- Ito Smith is going to be a steal in upcoming rookie drafts. I see mocks with him not going in three rounds. This is a mistake. Watch the tape.

my god, that is a bleep good list. almost matches mine to a tee with tapes. the only difference being is if I planned to touch Chubb in the first round (anywhere) I would be trading away that pick.