New York Giants Draft Breakdown: Da’Rel Scott, RB, Maryland

Jerry Reese’s reacts to the Da’rel Scott pick. Da’Rel Scott – we took a flyer on the guy because he is big and fast. He is fast, he had a terrific sophomore season. His production fell off, but late in the draft this is what you look for. You look for guys with some redeeming qualities. This guy is big and fast. We hope this guy will come over here and do a Willie Parker, one of those kinds of things. We’re really pleased with our draft class. We look forward to having these guys in here and get going with it.

The Good

Excellent blend of size and speed. Scott measured in at 5’11 and 211 pounds and ran a 4.34 in the 40 yard dash at the combine, which was the third fastest 40 yard dash this year. Scott also was very productive in college as both a runner and also contributed in the passing game. Scott averaged 5.4, 5.0, and 5.8 yards per carry the past three seasons and had 47 receptions combined the past three years (not great, but at least viable in the passing game). Scott has kick return potential because he’s dangerous in the open field and has break-away speed. He also can cut on a dime, he can also break tackles and is a willing blocker.

The Bad

The biggest negative is that his production decreased from his sophomore year to the past season, however his yards per carry was still very high. His touches were down significantly 209 down to 120 (but that’s not always a terrible thing). Another problem with Scott is he fumbles too much. He fumbled a lot in 2008 when he had a lot of touches, but not as much the past two seasons. Scott also isn’t a pure runner with exceptional vision like a Mark Ingram, he relies on his athletic ability. He’s not a great route runner, though he can catch the football out of the backfield, but with some polish could be an excellent receiving option out of the backfield. Lastly, Scott has a history of nagging injuries and may struggle to stay healthy in the N.F.L.

The Grade

A

He was one the five best available players on my personal board at that point and also filled a need for the Giants which is a third running back. Bradshaw and Jacobs have both struggled to stay healthy in the N.F.L. and the team rarely uses Danny Ware. At the very least Scott is a much better return option than Danny Ware. Scott also brings pure speed to a team that lacks speed throughout their roster (except at the QB spot…kidding). Scott’s numbers are similar to those numbers of Jahvid Best from last year, but at a much smaller price, if Scott can regain his 2009 form the Giants could have one of the steals of the drafts. Also, at one point in the pre-draft process Wes Bunting mentioned that he heard from a scout that there were some scouts who could have a first round grade on Scott (which must not have been the case, much like Bruce Campbell last year, but that just speaks to his potential). Sayre and I made Scott one of our last cuts from our first 100 players to be drafted board for the Huddle Report (which finished tied with Mike Mayock by the way), so his value was very good here.