2020 NFL Draft running back rankings and analysis-Swift not RB1?
To me, there seems like a pretty clear top five at running back in the 2020 NFL Draft. I know not everyone agrees, and many will have different guys in their top five, and certainly in a different order. But these five players stood out the most to me when watching their tape. I have them all rated very closely and it would likely depend on what team I was controlling and what offense I was running when deciding what order I would take them.
1. J.K. Dobbins, Ohio State
J.K. Dobbins had a spectacular season for the Buckeyes in 2019. He does it all. He has great vision at the line of scrimmage and is incredibly explosive through the hole. He has great footwork to avoid ankle tackles and is a powerful runner to break through arm tacklers.
He also has great vision in the open field, using his blockers well. He is elusive with simple cuts and spin moves and has true home run speed. In the pass game, Dobbins is a very good pass catcher out of the backfield and is extremely solid in pass protection.
Dobbins can step in and be an every-down back in the NFL right away, and I feel that he has still yet to meet his potential. Dobbins has the makings of an elite, complete running back and certainly should be in contention to be the first back off the board in the 2020 NFL Draft.
2. Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin
Jonathan Taylor had one of the most productive careers in college football history. Taylor is patient with good vision at the line of scrimmage, finding a hole and bursting through.
He is incredibly tough to bring down, with arm and spear tackles rarely doing the trick. He always keeps his legs churning, gaining yards even against loaded boxes.
In the open field he has a solid spin move and showed at the combine with his 4.39 40-yard dash time that he has plenty of speed to run away from defenders.
While he received an extremely heavy workload at Wisconsin, worrying some evaluators about just how long he’ll last at the next level, Taylor did come out as a junior and still has plenty of productive years ahead of him in the NFL.
3. Zack Moss, Utah
Zack Moss is one of my favorite players in the 2020 NFL Draft. He is just incredibly tough to bring down. He has outstanding footwork to avoid ankle tackles, a low center of gravity to avoid arm tackles and spears and always keeps his legs churning to fight for extra yards.
He is also fairly elusive in the open field with cuts and spins. He has great burst through the hole but doesn’t have elite home run speed. Sometimes he tries to do a little bit too much behind the line of scrimmage leading to some negative plays, but if he is able to find the hole he’s almost an automatic 5-10 yards.
Moss is a very solid receiver, maybe stemming from his cousins Santana and Sinorice Moss. He excels on out routes at the line of scrimmage and can take them all the way.
He does have a bit of an injury history, and obviously I don’t have access to his medical reports. If they are not clean, then he would not be this high on the list. Moss will have to prove that he can handle a full workload at the next level, but when healthy he has all the tools to be an elite running back in the NFL.
4. Clyde Edwards-Helaire, LSU
Clyde Edwards-Helaire is tough as nails and an absolute force in the pass game. He is an excellent receiver out of the backfield, running crisp routes, possessing solid hands and his HB angle is absolutely killer.
As a runner, CEH is very tough to bring down with his low center of gravity. He shrugs off or spins out of arm and spear tackles with ease and possesses enough speed to to finish off runs for touchdowns. He has good vision with solid burst through the hole and is very effective with jump cuts to avoid initial defenders and find a hole. He even contributes as a kick returner.
I see a lot of both Darren Spoles and Maurice Jones-Drew in the small-but-mighty running back whose style of play probably best compares to the likes of Christian McCaffrey in today’s NFL.
5. D’Andre Swift, Georgia
When you watch D’Andre Swift you can see why most evaluators have him as RB1. He does just about everything well. He is a tough runner that is hard to bring down. He has a strong lower body and is rarely tackled behind the line of scrimmage, typically falling forward.
He is elusive in the open field, usually making the first defender miss. He has great speed, threatening to take any carry to the house. He is excellent at using his footwork to avoid ankle tackle and has great spin moves and jump cuts. He is a serviceable receiver and pass blocker, allowing him to be a true every down back at the next level right away.
I know I have him, what looks like, much lower than most. But it really isn’t anything against Swift. He is a very solid prospect with probably the highest floor of any running back in the 2020 NFL Draft. The top five are super tight and well above the next tier for me. The way I’d have them come off the board would likely depend on fit and I was just a little more impressed with the tape of some other guys.