RB Thread

[JoeyFlex5]

RB should be one of our most sought after positions in the 2018 draft. West is a solid back, could have a breakout year but it's a long shot that he is "the guy" long term, Dixon is supremely talented but very injury prone. Next years RB crop is LOADED with talent, so let's discuss.

Saquon Barkley - obviously the premier back, and possibly the best rb prospect in a very long time. Breakaway speed, elusiveness reminiscent of shady McCoy, power only slightly below a leveon bells caliber, superb vision and patience and never misses a hole or a read. Hard to envision a scenario where he isn't a top 5 pick.

Bo Scarbrough - take derrick hen-... no... take brandon jacobs, give him stupid breakaway speed, give him top notch patience, give him a first step, and give him better lateral agility, and you get Bo Scarbrough. can he pass protect and catch the ball? who tf cares. sure, he may not be the prototypical modern NFL back, but if derrick henry can succeed, then scarbrough should blow him out of the water. he is an absolute workhorse and the kind of guy that will break the will of a defense and then break a run after. the ravens have some stuff at the skill positions, 3rd down back in woodhead, and if we extend wallace and perriman comes along and maclin stays healthy, then we need a workhorse back for a truly stacked skill group. pound the defense early and often to give us the playbook advantage and then pound again to close it out, scarbrough is that guy.

Royce freeman - this guy has a real shot at being a raven, basically a overall lesser version of Barkley with a little more power. He should be a second rounder and if he falls far enough he could be our pick. I would be thrilled. Has one cut ability, but is also a hell of a slasher who leaves defenders hugging ghosts in even the most cluttered of areas, while also being able to plow clean through tacklers. Combines his power with subtle cuts to make defenders roll off of him without breaking stride.

Derrius Guice - anyone else see a freaking carbon copy of ray rice? short and stocky, center of gravity is ridiculous and just wont go down, keeps those feet churning, great balance, great tenacity, quick feet to stay slippery in traffic, and some breakaway speed. ill need to watch more of this guy, just started checking him out and he looks good.

Akrum wadley - highly elusive and speedy, looks skinny, maybe even frail, but can make defenders whiff as well as anyone and makes strong decisive cuts behind the line, makes a play out of nothing better than any back in this class. No hole? No problem, just bounce it outside and burn my way to the sideline, although his ability yo carry the load and attack each dimension of the defense is a concern.

I'll throw in more later, but so far I have a well known man crush on Barkley, but freeman is growing on me, and he is a guy I will likely be touting for a while and hoping we land him in some way

 

[Somerset Ravens]

RB should be one of our most sought after positions in the 2018 draft. West is a solid back, could have a breakout year but it's a long shot that he is "the guy" long term, Dixon is supremely talented but very injury prone. Next years RB crop is LOADED with talent, so let's discuss.

Saquon Barkley - obviously the premier back, and possibly the best rb prospect in a very long time. Breakaway speed, elusiveness reminiscent of shady McCoy, power only slightly below a leveon bells caliber, superb vision and patience and never misses a hole or a read. Hard to envision a scenario where he isn't a top 5 pick.

Royce freeman - this guy has a real shot at being a raven, basically a overall lesser version of Barkley with a little more power. He should be a second rounder and if he falls far enough he could be our pick. I would be thrilled. Has one cut ability, but is also a hell of a slasher who leaves defenders hugging ghosts in even the most cluttered of areas, while also being able to plow clean through tacklers. Combines his power with subtle cuts to make defenders roll off of him without breaking stride.

Akrum wadley - highly elusive and speedy, looks skinny, maybe even frail, but can make defenders whiff as well as anyone and makes strong decisive cuts behind the line, makes a play out of nothing better than any back in this class. No hole? No problem, just bounce it outside and burn my way to the sideline, although his ability yo carry the load and attack each dimension of the defense is a concern.

I'll throw in more later, but so far I have a well known man crush on Barkley, but freeman is growing on me, and he is a guy I will likely be touting for a while and hoping we land him in some way

It would be fantastic if we could land Barkley but I hope we are not drafting that high. Royce Freeman certainly had a strong game last week. He ran for 150 yards and 4 tds, he also caught 4 passes for 50 yards. I know that was against Southern Utah so it will be interesting how he does against Nebraska on Saturday.

Adding a quality running back and some offensive line help would go along way for the Ravens in 2018.

 

[JoeyFlex5]

It would be fantastic if we could land Barkley but I hope we are not drafting that high. Royce Freeman certainly had a strong game last week. He ran for 150 yards and 4 tds, he also caught 4 passes for 50 yards. I know that was against Southern Utah so it will be interesting how he does against Nebraska on Saturday.

Adding a quality running back and some offensive line help would go along way for the Ravens in 2018.

i don't believe freeman will be available late second, I think he goes top 40, and assuming we make a playoff run and he's there in the late first, then I'd be strongly considering him, but I would also have a hard time passing on quenton Nelson for him if both are there. Quenton Nelson is simply the most dominant guard I've ever scouted, and I believe a dominant line makes a weak rb look good and a weak OL makes a dominant rb look weak.

but it would be tough, I think he's a future stud and would love to see him in baltimore

 

[BloodRaven]

I agree, we have a slow corps now that Mizzell is gone. We need a homerun hitter

 

[JoeyFlex5]

I agree, we have a slow corps now that Mizzell is gone. We need a homerun hitter

Dude, I was mad that we let him go. And for that same reason, he adds so much speed that we could really use

 

[Somerset Ravens]

Dude, I was mad that we let him go. And for that same reason, he adds so much speed that we could really use

The Ravens took a calculated risk letting Mizzell go and they lost this time.

I seem to remember you are a Bama fan, what are your thoughts on Scarborough?

 

[JoeyFlex5]

The Ravens took a calculated risk letting Mizzell go and they lost this time.

I seem to remember you are a Bama fan, what are your thoughts on Scarborough?

You are correct and I am a straight up Scarborough fanboy. I wasn't big on Derrick Henry as a pro, I am very big on Scarborough, he is the nastiest runner I've ever seen, he's a faster more agile and fluid Henry. But for some reason I was under the impression he would be coming out in the following draft.

 

[BloodRaven]

Dude, I was mad that we let him go. And for that same reason, he adds so much speed that we could really use

Such a Ravens move though, its not the first time we've cut or benched the hot hand and ended up with another jag.

 

[K-Dog]

RB should be one of our most sought after positions in the 2018 draft. West is a solid back, could have a breakout year but it's a long shot that he is "the guy" long term, Dixon is supremely talented but very injury prone. Next years RB crop is LOADED with talent, so let's discuss.

Saquon Barkley - obviously the premier back, and possibly the best rb prospect in a very long time. Breakaway speed, elusiveness reminiscent of shady McCoy, power only slightly below a leveon bells caliber, superb vision and patience and never misses a hole or a read. Hard to envision a scenario where he isn't a top 5 pick.

Royce freeman - this guy has a real shot at being a raven, basically a overall lesser version of Barkley with a little more power. He should be a second rounder and if he falls far enough he could be our pick. I would be thrilled. Has one cut ability, but is also a hell of a slasher who leaves defenders hugging ghosts in even the most cluttered of areas, while also being able to plow clean through tacklers. Combines his power with subtle cuts to make defenders roll off of him without breaking stride.

Akrum wadley - highly elusive and speedy, looks skinny, maybe even frail, but can make defenders whiff as well as anyone and makes strong decisive cuts behind the line, makes a play out of nothing better than any back in this class. No hole? No problem, just bounce it outside and burn my way to the sideline, although his ability yo carry the load and attack each dimension of the defense is a concern.

I'll throw in more later, but so far I have a well known man crush on Barkley, but freeman is growing on me, and he is a guy I will likely be touting for a while and hoping we land him in some way

Could any of these guys be around late in the first round ? ( I think it is a fair assumption we will be picking late in the first round )

 

[JoeyFlex5]

Could any of these guys be around late in the first round ? ( I think it is a fair assumption we will be picking late in the first round )

i think were just as likely to pick in the mid teens as we are late 20s.

i think every RB aside from barkley likely goes no earlier than 20. my #2 is scarbrough and as it stands now id be shocked to see him go higher than 28ish. but this obviously is barring anything extreme happening(injury, freakishly good season etc.).

i think we should easily(barkley aside) have our pick of the litter in the first, maybe even with a hefty trade back we could as well. although i think with the likely late picking teams like the patriots, packers, raiders, maybe even the steelers if they dont sign bell long term, that someone takes a RB late first.

all that to say... yes, we should be able to pick any player aside from barkley if we want in the first lol.

 

[Oldfaithful]

No Nick Chubb? I think he'd fit Roman's scheme like a glove

 

[Jacquouille]

No Nick Chubb? I think he'd fit Roman's scheme like a glove

Well thank you! I felt so lonely.

I'll add Ronald Jones, I've heard people want speed, this guy has that and then some. Damien Harris is a guy I really like too, and well, as always I'm driving the «Chubb or Wadley» bandwagon.

 

[JoeyFlex5]

No Nick Chubb? I think he'd fit Roman's scheme like a glove

Not done. Adding on as I go, feel free to add a scouting report lol

 

[Jacquouille]

I did a post about it on the original prospect watch thread, should I move it here?

 

[SepticeyePoe]

I did a post about it on the original prospect watch thread, should I move it here?

Sure, I'd be interested in reading it.

 

[JoeyFlex5]

I did a post about it on the original prospect watch thread, should I move it here?

Yeah man go ahead.

These threads are never designed to be one persons scouting report, the more opinions the better, open forum folks!

 

[Jacquouille]

Here comes the copy paste:

My opinion is that we need to draft a RB on the first two days of the draft next year. Wether you think Dixon is the future or not, we need to get another RB to complement him or take the lead role. I don't believe West is a consistent enough threat to carry our offense, and Woodhead won't be here long.
I personally would love to have Quenton Nelson in the first round (because he's an extraordinarily good prospect that would make our OL terrific and Roman would make a misery out of opponents' front with him and Stanley on the left side) so that would leave us choosing on Day 2. Prospects that have caught my attention are Akrum Wadley (not really a secret now), Damien Harris and Nick Chubb.

Chubb, provided he regains some of his lost explosiveness, is the incarnation of a workhorse, a guy you can eaily feed 25+ carries and who will hurt and tire the defense, while also being able to break a long one on any given carry. He isn't a perfect prospect even if he comes back more explosive, as his pass catching and protection ability leave something to be desired.

Wadley and Harris are more speed backs that can still absorb hits and take a lot of touches. I see them as Kamara like weapons. While Harris is the more athletic and faster back, Wadley has better vision, patience and agility to make people miss. He is a nightmare in the open field. If you believe one of West or Dixon can be the workhorse and carry the load, one of these two can be 15+ touches players behind them and will consistently exploit holes in the trenches or screens or dumpoffs and when they do, they'll consistently turn upfield for first downs and more.

Other RB that I like but still need to be convinced are Scarbrough and Ronald Jones. Jones is pretty great but can he take the pounding? He looks very slim for a RB. Scarbrough is honestly nothing really special imo, I like the violence that he runs with but he doesn't have burst or explosiveness in his lower body to wow you. He's stiff and won't make a lot of players miss.


Since then I had the occasion to add another name to my list: John Kelly. This man just doesn't go down. He's small but he's running wild on every play. I absolutely loved what I saw in his first game as a starter.

 

[Ravensnation5220]

Not sure if you know of him yet but Trayveon Williams from Texas am is vastly underrated. He has great breakaway speed and puts up monster numbers. He might have a fumbling issue. Not sure yet but could be a guy in the 2-4 range. He has plenty of talent

 

[JoeyFlex5]

One question @Jacquouille . Your guy is wadley, then you say you have questions about jones because of his slender build.

Wadley is a pencil necked chicken legged rb lol, my immediate concern was his size.

Do you just think wadleys ability is that much better than jones that it's not a concern?

 

[Jacquouille]

One question @Jacquouille . Your guy is wadley, then you say you have questions about jones because of his slender build.

Wadley is a pencil necked chicken legged rb lol, my immediate concern was his size.

Do you just think wadleys ability is that much better than jones that it's not a concern?

Fair question. It's just my eyes but I've always thought of Wadley as a RB that, while not a power back, had enough thickness to absorb hits. When you watch him it's also apparent that he does a good job not exposing himself to punishing hits. He's always in the right position to limit the banging. His vision is so good, he knows exactly what to do when he gets the ball. He does a goob job of staying behind his blockers, and in the open field his quick feet, spin and jukes make a lot of people miss.

Jones looks like he's bulked up this season. Before that he looked like a slot receiver. He is suppremely talented as a runner but doesn't much in the passing game or in pass protection. I really like that he's bigger though, because he's an excellent RB, his explosiveness is a treat to watch. I would say the problem of the weight is a lot less legit now. However I would feel better about it if he could offer more as a receiver and pass blocker. All in all, I like him and liked him since he was a freshman, I just have some big question marks.