OldTimer1960 Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 (edited) Disclaimer: long time fan, long time follower of the draft, I don’t profess to have scouting experience or expertise. I think the Bills are interested in a RB to share carries with Devin Singletary, so I watched multiple full games of several RB prospects and my observations/opinions follow. I didn’t include the top 4 backs (Swift, Taylor, Dobbins, Edwards-Helaire) as I don’t expect them to be available by pick 54, but I think any of them would be nice picks if still there. Players are not listed in any specific order. Comments and discussion welcomed! Overall, I really liked Cam Akers and think he or A.J. Dillon would be really nice sharing carries with Devin Singletary. RBs Zach Moss - runs with power, decent agility for a power runner but not his calling card. Reasonably good hands out of backfield. Speed is a negative and isn’t terribly elusive. Running style could lead to short career unless he shares carries with another back. Darrynton Evans - watched vs North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia Southern. Speed is evident. Quick decisive cuts. Wasn’t used heavily as a receiver. Not a power runner, but will show effort after contact. Anthony McFarland - Watched vs Temple, Purdue and Syracuse. Very quick acceleration and good top end speed. Quick cutter, but not especially elusive. Runs hard, but smaller stature means he isn’t going to run NFL defenders over. Not much experience catching passes - I wonder why as getting him in space on swing passes would seem ideal. Cam Akers - Viewed NC State, Miami. Compact, powerful and shows good speed. Really breaks tackles and finishes runs strong. Took fair number of snaps in wildcat and throws a half decent ball. Really enjoyed watching his games. AJ Dillon - (watched Norte Dame, Clemson, Fla State) BIG back with excellent speed for his size. Can get through a hole and also can pick his way through interior traffic. Takes multiple players to bring him down. Not super nifty, but fairly nimble for size. Has carried the ball a LOT. Not used much as a receiver. Given wear and tear from college, may be best splitting carries with another back to prolong career. LaMical Perine - (watched vs LSU, Auburn). Enough quickness to avoid an initial tackle, but not especially nifty nor fast. Runs pretty hard. Good receiver out of backfield. Looks competent as a pass blocker. Reportedly high character and good special teamer. Joshua Kelley - (watched vs Ariz, Utah, USC). Ok size, pretty decisive as a runner who finds holes. Shows pretty good acceleration to get through holes quickly. Combine 40 time was good. His story of perseverance after being lightly recruited is a nice one, but I don’t think he will be more than a competent backup in NFL. Edited March 22, 2020 by OldTimer1960 5 4
DJB Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 (edited) Good research! For me I have Akers in the top 4 and CEH as my #5 but it's not a huge difference. Dillon after that 5 is my favorite back Hes potentially the next D Henry if he starts running more angry. I love Z Moss tape. He runs angry like Marshawn and runs guys over. He had a poor 40 at the combine but "maybe" improved on it? Hes probably still a round 4 guy. But a guy we could use to close out games. I really like L Perine and J Kelly. Neither look like they have high end potential but both could be Jordan Howard Howard types. Just solid backups. D Evan's is so quick. We saw R Mostert carve out a role in San Fran so no reason this dude maybe cant do the same. At worst hes a speedy 3rd down guy. McFarland is an interesting guy. He profiles similar to Singletary. A smaller guy but elusive. Does show nice hands. Seems to me more like a 3ed down guy again. Lots of RB talent in the draft and I really hope we grab one of these guys. Edited March 22, 2020 by DJB 1
Alphadawg7 Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 Lots of backs I would be stoked to get. But I got a draft day crush right now on AJ Dillon. 10 1
OldTimer1960 Posted March 22, 2020 Author Posted March 22, 2020 3 minutes ago, Alphadawg7 said: Lots of backs I would be stoked to get. But I got a draft day crush right now on AJ Dillon. I think Singletary and Dillon sharing 25-30 touches/game would be a really nice combination with Yeldon as a receiving option. With the mileage on Dillon, I think he likely lasts into the 3rd. 1
Kirby Jackson Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 I lean towards RB as the pick at 54. If that’s the case I think potentially, all of the RBs are in play. If not I like Akers or Evans. 1 1
DCOrange Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 Of this group, Akers is a league above the rest IMO. Dillon is pretty much off my draft board personally. I like but don’t love Perine and Moss. Not on your list, but a couple other guys I’m interested in are Ke’shawn Vaughn and Deejay Dallas
The Firebaugh Kid Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 Dillon looks slow. Idk about that 40 time. Wasnt a fan of Motor last year tho. And I love him now. I get stuck on speed.
DCOrange Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 Just now, The Firebaugh Kid said: Dillon looks slow. Idk about that 40 time. Wasnt a fan of Motor last year tho. And I love him now. I get stuck on speed. I don’t like him as a prospect, but he’s undoubtedly fast when he gets up to top speed. He’s just pretty much purely a straight line guy that needs a bit of a runway to get going. 1
ALLEN1QB Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 I have a feeling that we will be trading back into the 1st to get someone.
njbuff Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 Akers #1 Evans #2 Akers sets up his blocks well too and brings everything else to the table. The Bills should make him the odds on favorite to be the pick at 54 if they don't move from there. Evans speed would be the perfect compliment to Singletary. The Bills should have him on their radar as the odds on favorite for their 3rd round pick. Otherwise, what they do at RB in this draft is fine with me. 3 minutes ago, ALLEN1QB said: I have a feeling that we will be trading back into the 1st to get someone. If they did that, my guess is that they would do that to get Noah Igbinoghene or Trevon Diggs. Then they would take a RB late in the draft. 1
DFT Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 2 things I’m extremely sure about when it comes to AJ Dillon... #1 his lower center of gravity stands a good chance of making him much more consistent than most “big backs” #2 if he stole a potato off of my plate at Golden Corral, I probably wouldn’t try to get it back. 5
PIZ Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 1 hour ago, Alphadawg7 said: Lots of backs I would be stoked to get. But I got a draft day crush right now on AJ Dillon. He reminds me of Jerome Bettis. 1
Formerly Allan in MD Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 Dobbins, who isn't listed for some reason.
Just Joshin' Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 There is a good chance one of your top 4 is available at 54. If so, pull the trigger. Whom ever the back is I want a dual purpose back. Gore was old and slow but the defenses knew it was run all the way. Go 3 wide with a receiving threat out of the backfield. 1
thunderingsquid Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 2 hours ago, Alphadawg7 said: Lots of backs I would be stoked to get. But I got a draft day crush right now on AJ Dillon. Same here. Thunder and lightning.
Florida Bills Fanatic Posted March 22, 2020 Posted March 22, 2020 IMHO the Bills will select a RB in the draft. I'm not sold on the idea that they are as motivated to pick one as some of us believe them to be. I keep thinking that Beane will be looking at the BPA in positions DE, OT, CB, RB, and WR in no particular order. It will depend on how their board is set and which position groups fall in the draft. As several posts have pointed out there are several decent options at RB and I will be okay with a fair number of them. Given the state of the roster, I don't see Beane actually making 7 picks. I believe that he will move around on day two using day three picks to make it happen. I expect only 4 or 5 at the most to be drafted by the Bills.
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