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There is a growing movement in the Dynasty community toward “devy” players. The term “devy” refers to developmental players carried on the dynasty league rosters. These devy players are usually college players but can even be high school athletes. Each week, we will look at a different set of devy rankings.
For some young ball carriers, the talent jumps off the screen. Players like Leonard Fournette should excel in the NFL, even on most teams. He is that talented. But, most of the youngsters will need the right situation in order to reach their potential. Yes, talent is the biggest indicator – and we try to address that component below. But, the situation the player is drafted into is a big variable as well. So are injuries. All of this to say that a player will need more than raw, innate talent in order to reach his ceiling and be worth the dynasty capital needed to acquire.
This series of articles focuses on players who should be considered on their respective NFL prospects not college production. In this article, we will take a look at the top running back prospects who will be eligible for the 2018 NFL Draft. Also, keep in mind that one or more of the backs eligible to turn pro when eligible will actually stay in school.
5. Jordan Scarlett (Florida) – The 5'11”, 207-pound true Freshman has the size and speed (4.48 40-yard dash) to excel in the SEC. He played at perennial power Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, FL. While Scarlett has the measurables to be successful, he will need to work on his vision and elusiveness. We expect him to develop into one of the premier ball carriers in the country. As a high school Senior, Scarlett carried the ball just 143 times. On those carries, he picked up 1,124 yards and scored 24 times. The youngster is starting to get more carries after a good showing against Georgia a couple of weeks ago. His role will continue to grow.
4. Jacques Patrick (Florida State) – Patrick is a big collegiate back, especially considering he played high school ball a year ago. While starting against Syracuse as starter Dalvin Cook was sidelined with a hamstring injury a few weeks ago, the 6'1”, 232-pound true Freshman rushed for 162 yards and three touchdowns on 24 carries. Patrick's future is bright. He was Rivals and ESPN RB3 in the class and named Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of Florida. That is no small honor given the talent that originates in the state. Patrick will become a household name in the college football community next year.
3. Damien Harris (Alabama) – Harris is from Berea, KY. Many recruiting services had the 5'11”, 205-pound true Freshman as the top back in the class. He is more polished than most youngsters, possessing speed, explosiveness, and the vision to cut back and find a lane to break open a big play. Even though a knee injury limited Harris to just seven games as a high school Senior, he still rushed for 1,474 yards and 23 touchdowns. Alabama continues to have a pipeline at the running back position. Harris may need Henry and Drake to leave before starring.
2. Derrius Guice (LSU) – Guice is already finding carries behind superstar Leonard Fournette. He will have to wait until after next season to be the primary ball carrier, but Guice has impressed. The 5'11”, 215-pound true Freshman was named the SEC Freshman Player of the Week after the game against South Carolina. He rushed for 161 yards in that game, three more than Fournette. Guice was ranked RB2 by Rivals and has shown that to be an accurate ranking. Guice was the MVP of the US Army All-American game. In the summer of 2014, Guice – a local Louisiana player – attended a LSU camp. During the camp, he ran a 4.35 40-yard dash. This is impressive for a high schooler of his size. The SEC will be stacked at the running back position once again with Harris and Guice behind Derrick Henry and Fournette. Guice is a star.
1. Saquon Barkley (Penn State) – While not as highly touted as the four above, Barkley has been studly as a true Freshman. The 5'11”, 215 pounder is fast, earning the gold medal in the 100 yard dash for Eastern Pennsylvania. In his first year, Barkley is carrying the Penn State offense with the struggles of Christian Hackenberg at quarterback. After the game against Northwestern, NFL.com's Daniel Jeremiah (a former NFL scout) said Barkley is "going to be really, really good." We concur. He is producing big numbers even when opposing defenses know Barkley is the only weapon in the Nittany Lions offense.
Honorable Mention:
Myles Gaskin (Washington) – Gaskin is on the smaller side (5'9”, 192 pounds) but is playing well for Washington. Even though Gaskin is a true Freshman, head coach Chris Petersen has indicated multiple times that he wants to continue to Gaskin the ball more frequently. He has carried the Huskies offense. Gaskin should top the 1,000-yard mark in his first collegiate season. Even with Washington having produced several NFL backs, Gaskin is the first Freshman to top 100 yards in consecutive games, and he was able to make it three straight after the Stanford contest. Gaskin should continue to flourish and develop. He plays for a great coach who will help him get better.
Joe Mixon (Oklahoma) – The redshirt Freshman is big and elusive. Even as a bigger back (6'2”, 210 pounds), Mixon is a good runner and a great receiver. Few young backs his size offer as much talent in the passing game. Mixon splits time with Samaje Perine on the depth chart. Before getting overly excited about Mixon, let's remember he has already endured a lengthy suspension in 2014. He was suspended from team activities for the entire 2014 season after an alleged incident that summer in which he was accused of punching a woman in the face. To mixed reviews, Mixon was given a second chance by coach Bob Stoops. Mixon has starred in 2015 and it should not be a surprise. He was playing well in practice before the incident last summer. There was buzz around the Sooners program regarding the young ball carrier. In addition, he was Rivals RB1 for his high school class. His versatility will benefit Mixon as he progresses in his career. Few backs show such ability as a runner and receiver.
Ronald Jones II (USC) – The 5'11”, 185-pound true Freshman has starred for the Trojans this season. Jones ran for 177 yards, including a 77-yard touchdown, against Arizona. In that contest, he also caught a short pass for another score. Jones has created buzz throughout his short time on campus. In a recent article in the Los Angeles Times, interim coach Helton compared Jones to Roger Craig. That is quite the compliment. During summer practices, quarterback Cody Kessler said Jones had the “it” factor. Let's remember that he is just a true Freshman and will continue to get better.
Kerryon Johnson (Auburn) – Johnson is a smaller (5'11”, 195 pounds) but has flashed ability in his short time on campus. Effusive in his praise, Auburn offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee said in an AL.com article, "He's more than a scat back. He's an every down playmaker … Kerryon is one of those guys that has (Darren) McFadden-like ability, when you look back at guys that Tim (Horton) and I and coach (Malzahn) have all coached, a guy that can really do it all. He's big enough, he's athletic enough to be an every down back, he can play receiver, he can probably take snaps at quarterback.” Quite the compliment. Johnson is already seeing significant playing time as a true Freshman. We expect him to battle Racean Thomas for the starter job next year. Auburn will continue to find ways to get the ball to Johnson. He makes plays for an offense without a strong passing game.
Soso Jamabo (UCLA) – The big (6'3”, 200 pounds) true Freshman has already enjoyed a big game while filling in for Paul Perkins against California. In that contest, he rushed 18 times for 79 yards and a touchdown. ESPN has called Jamabo "a bigger version" of Oregon's Byron Marshall. Jamabo does have more scrutiny after his police chase and arrest on prom night. He was Scout's RB1 and named First -Team USA Today All-America for his play at Plano (Texas) West High School. The talent is apparent and we expect the youngster to be past his indiscretions.
Taj Griffin (Oregon) – Griffin is on the smaller side, standing just 5'8”, 178 pounds. But, the true Freshman runs the 40-yard dash in a swift 4.37 seconds (rumored to run as low as 4.31). He even is on record with a 45” vertical jump. We expect him to add weight without sacrificing the blazing speed. Quarterback Jeff Lockie said that Griffin "is faster than anyone you've really seen before." This is impressive given the amount of speedy players who have come through the Oregon program. Lockie continued his statement, he's super, freaky talented … you can see him start to figure out some concepts, it's kind of scary." He was Rivals all purpose RB1. In Griffin's first start this season, against Colorado, he carried the ball 11 times for 110 yards and a touchdown and caught three passes for 41 yards. Griffin's speed and explosiveness will enable him to have some huge games at the college level. His NFL future will be determined by which team drafts him. We could imagine him succeeding in Saints offense on the dome turf.
That will do it for the 2018 Running Back Draft Class. Next week, we will look at the top wide receivers of the 2018 Draft Class.
Feel free to email me (Tefertiller@Footballguys.com) with feedback. Also, I am on Twitter (www.Twitter.com/JeffTefertiller), LinkedIn, and Google+, so you can ask me questions on one of these as well.