DuJuan Harris – I’m excited about Harris. He was our most productive back. He’s quick… plenty fast… good hands… solid blocker… good vision… very decisive… He’s everything Thompson hoped Brandon Jackson would be when he drafted him. His body of work is a small sample size, but he’s currently the default starter, and isn’t a bad option there.
Brandon Saine – the crazy speed makes him tempting.
Alex Green – speaking of B-Jax, Green must have trained with him in the offseason. Green has limited vision and even less patience. He got more carries than anyone and rewarded us with a team low 3.4 per carry. He seems to still think that he can outrun the defense to the edge. He did outrun some players, our O-linemen. I don’t even know if he understands how cutback lanes form in an outside zone run.
James Starks – When has he played an injury free season? He was hurt his final season in college and hasn’t been healthy a full season with us. He runs far too upright, so even when guys only get a hand on him, he gets spun and turned more than he would if he played with better pad level. I think he will always battle injuries.
Cedric Benson – He had 71 carries for us (a 3.5 per carry average) and might have run three stretch plays. He doesn’t have the speed to threaten the front side on a stretch, so we ran him a steady diet of inside zone plays. When the defense knows you’re going to run between the tackles, they’re going to be waiting for you. He was done before the lisfranc injury. Now he’s well-done.
Ryan Grant – I’m a huge Grant fan. He had the second highest ypc on the team, making the most of limited opportunities. He would be a better option than Benson, but sadly, he’s done too.
John Kuhn – you gotta love the guy… just not $2.5 million worth. We run TEs in the backfield. Kuhn represents replaceable production. He’s a fan favorite, but I can give you 1.75 million reasons to kill the final year of his deal.
Mike Shanahan - whom I don't care for at all - has a knack for finding backs. I'll let you in on his secret… the rollover in his backfield. He brings in about seven new backs a year. A few stick, rarely more than a year, but when you get an extended look at 20 backs in three years, you find a back like Alfred Morris.
Running back value in the draft…
Lacy looks like Ingram lite to me. I wouldn’t spend a first on him.
Giovani Bernard (UNC) would be intriguing if he lasted till our second round pick.
I think the value at RB shows up around the fourth round… where guys like Bell, Stepfan Taylor of Stanford, Mike Gillislee of and Kenjon Barner of Oregon are likely to be in-play.
As for the accompanying O-line discussion, my first round wishlist is primarily on the defensive side of the ball. There’s only one player on the offensive side of the ball with a chance of being there at #26 that I would take. Sorry Barrett Jones fans. Jones is versatile. He could bail you out of a game at tackle, but he’s no more a tackle than TJ Lang. I think Jones is more guard than center. He wouldn’t be an awful pick, but I would be disappointed. I think Jones will be solid player/starter for years. My concern is that he’s an AJ Hawk type, in that he wouldn’t disappoint, but always has you wishing there was more to him. I just don’t see the upside.