2023 RB Draft Prospects Group Assessment

[Whatever]

(02-10-2023, 05:24 PM)ochocincos Wrote: I think that's more of a general rule that applies to every position - the earlier the prospect, the more likely you are (or should be) to get a good player.
But when breaking down positions, I would probably put RB lower on the importance pole that you have to take early to get a good one.
QB, OL, DL, CB, WR are positions I have above RB when it comes to needing to get one early if you want a good one.

We see quite a good amount of the RBs who are in the Top 32 each year in rushing yards who were drafted 3rd round or below.
Going down the rushing leaders....
Jamaal Williams - 4th round
Alvin Kamara - 3rd round
Dameon Pierce - 4th round
Aaron Jones - 5th round
Tyler Allgeier - 5th round
Rhamondre Stevenson - 5th round
Brian Robinson - 3rd round
Austin Ekeler - UDFA
D'Onta Foreman - 3rd round
Tony Pollard - 4th round
Devin Singletary - 3rd round
Isaiah Pacheco - 7th round
Jeff Wilson - UDFA
Raheem Mostert - UDFA
James Conner - 3rd round
David Montgomery - 3rd round

That's half of the Top 32 RBs in terms of rushing yards.

I agree that the elite RBs are predominantly coming in the first two rounds of the draft, but there are still plenty of really good RBs who are getting drafted outside the top 2 rounds.

The problem I have with this is that in the current NFL, RB's are either blocking or running routes more than than actually carrying the rock.  The guys you typically find later in the draft are rarely every down type backs.  

The other big issue is the top end RB's tend to be very safe picks.  It's often better in the long run to take one in the 1st or 2nd and be set for the next 4-5 years than have to invest mid round picks in the position every year.