re: TDFL Droppings Post Draft Analysis

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Top 25 Running Backs

1. Eddie Lacy

Some years give us consensus at top. 2015 has a dogpile. 5-6 players have legitimate claims to the No. 1 spot, while 1-2 more are realistic darkhorses. I’ll give the nod to Lacy, a drive-finishing force for football’s deadliest offense. The owner of 24 touchdowns across 31 career contests, Lacy added a new dimension to his new game last season when he emerged as one of the league’s most dangerous pass-catching backs. Among runners, only Roy Helu and Le’Veon Bell bested Lacy’s 10.2 yards per catch. Lacy also got better as the year wore on, averaging 5.04 yards per carry over the season’s frigid final two months. Bell would be the clear-cut No. 1 were it not for his two-game suspension, but his ban leaves a hole Lacy is ready to burst through.

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12. Justin Forsett — One of 2014’s toughest cases, 29-year-old Forsett has monster upside for an offensive coordinator who peppers his running backs with targets.

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20. Latavius Murray — Has the talent to explode into the top five, but a “track record” best left air quoted.

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21. Keenan Allen — Probably ranked too low, it’s not outside the realm of possibility Allen flirts with WR1 status.

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Gore RB14, one spot behind $44 Forsett

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Except Allen Robinson doesn't run a 4.4

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He did at his pro day

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Gordon was a guy on a meh offensive team that put up great numbers and was hyped up by you.

I thought he was just ok before that season, like Robinson now.

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But I'll trust the combine over his pro day

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6. Jeremy Hill
Eighth in rushing (1,124 yards), third in running back YPC (5.06) and tied for third in ground scores (nine), Hill was the RB10 as a rookie despite making only eight starts. He was the NFL’s leading rusher over the season’s final nine games. Hill is a complete player, one who catches passes and holds his own as a blocker. He’ll cede some passing-game snaps to Giovani Bernard, but the league’s most impressive sophomore back is not part of a committee. He’s the funnel through which OC Hue Jackson is going to filter his run-heavy offense, and an absolute steal in the second round of fantasy drafts.

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8. C.J. Anderson
With Anderson, there’s only one question — can he hold off Ronnie Hillman and Montee Ball? With most signs pointing to “yes,” Anderson has No. 1 overall upside. Anderson was one of the league’s most effective second-half players last season, piling up 1,057 yards from scrimmage in Weeks 10-17, and averaging an absurd 29 touches between Weeks 12-16. Now the Broncos want him to be Peyton Manning’s “best friend” as they look to right the wrongs of last year’s collapse. Anderson is a potential three-down back for a coach in Gary Kubiak who favors a “bellcow.” Anderson’s 2015 will go up in smoke if Hillman or Ball forces a committee, but his “risk” is nowhere near as compelling as his reward.

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9. Mike Evans
Evans caught 68 passes for 1,051 yards and 12 touchdowns as a rookie, finishing as the WR11. He turned 22 on Friday. Making the transition from Josh McCown/Mike Glennon to Jameis Winston — not to mention from literally not having an offensive coordinator to Dirk Koetter — the sky is the limit for the jump-ball prince of the NFL. Beckham is better, but Evans is a powerful vice president of the wide receiver class of 2014.

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17. DeSean Jackson — They’ll remain hard to predict, but D-Jax will rip off enough big games to comfortably finish as a WR2.

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20. Sammy Watkins — League-worst quarterback play is a possibility in Buffalo, but Watkins’ special playmaking ability translates no matter who’s under center.

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6. Zach Ertz
As Evan Silva lays out in his Shy-Away Top 40, Ertz’s TE1 candidacy is littered with questions, his recovery from groin surgery chief among them. The Eagles love Brent Celek as a blocker, and use two-tight end sets sparingly. It’s just that Ertz’s upside sticks out like a sore thumb in a jumbled tight end field. Jason Witten and Delanie Walker are safer, but the kind of talents that usually become available on the waiver wire. Ertz could be a dud, but the same can be said for nearly all the players behind him. Bet on potential.

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fwiw Dez Bryant's 40 times are from his pro day, mate. He didn't run at the combine

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