Results for: "rookie RB efficiency"

No matter what future lies in store for James Proche at the NFL level, he is in the college record books. Currently, he ranks No. 16 in NCAAF history with 301 career receptions. It wasn’t until his final two seasons however, after both Courtland Sutton and Trey Quinn left, that he caught most of them. In total, he had 301 receptions for 3,949 yards and 39 total touchdowns. Good for a 38.4-percent (78th-percentile among qualified wide receivers) College Dominator Rating.

What Proche has going for him is his pedigree. In the past decade, SMU has given the NFL Courtland Sutton, Trey Quinn, and Emmanuel Sanders. Like Quinn, Proche shouldn’t expect to hear his name called out before Day Three. As such, we shouldn’t expect him to hit the ground running in his first professional season. Hopefully he falls to a team that wants an average athlete who can play football. If this is the case, then he can be a great later round add in dynasty that turns into a PPR machine.

Aaron Parker toiled away at Rhode Island for the duration of his college career, but he exhibited prolific production and athletic dominance over his competition. While that competition was the Colonial Athletic Association, Parker led the entire conference with 81 receptions and 1,223 receiving yards in his final year. He first broke out in his true freshman season with 23 catches for 441 yards and four scores, and he never looked back. That 18.3 Breakout Age is in the 99th-percentile among qualified wide receivers.

Due to his lack of collegiate pedigree and middling performance at the Combine, Parker is destined to be a later pick in this year’s draft. That said, his upside represents a low-risk, low-investment pick for both NFL teams and our dynasty teams. His athleticism and ability to consistently make contested catches, an ability that’s more innate than teachable, will pop off the screen for NFL talent evaluators, making him an attractive dart throw late in rookie drafts.

The most well-known fact about Devin Duvernay is that he is fast. The former high school track star can blaze both on and off the football field. It was no surprise that he posted a spectacular 4.39 (95th-percentile among qualified wide receivers) 40-yard dash time at this year’s NFL Combine this year. At 5-11 and 200-pounds, his 40-time netted a solid 104.7 (82nd-percentile) Speed Score that ranks among the top of this year’s wide receiver class. His speed and athleticism is the defining trait that gives him a chance to succeed in the NFL.

The key for Duvernay, even more so than other prospects, will be to fall in the right landing spot. He does not project to be a true alpha or X-receiver that can win with volume alone. He will need to be in a dynamic offense with an above average quarterback that can get him in space with accurate short and intermediate targets, where he can use his speed to break game-changing plays. If he is miscast as a deep threat because of his speed, it would kill any week-to-week fantasy potential outside of deep best ball leagues.

Donovan Peoples-Jones’ college career is best described as a disappointment, but that’s mostly due to the sky high expectations set for him coming out of high school in Detroit. In his second season, he appeared to evolve into the dynamic playmaker scouts envisioned. With a mere 17.8-percent Target Share in his sophomore season, he produced 21.8-percent of the team’s receiving yards. This production earned him a 19.5 (77th-percentile among qualified wide receivers) Breakout Age, in the top 20 among qualified 2020 wide receiver prospects.

Draft and fantasy analysts who identify as productions snobs will pass on Peoples-Jones for reasons such as his poor counting stats and 25.1-percent (36th-percentile) College Dominator Rating. Still, the dude is an impressive physical specimen and projects as a Day 2 draft pick. Currently a third round pick in dynasty rookie drafts, he’s a low cost, high-upside bet to finally fulfill his incredible potential in the NFL.

Jake Fromm epitomizes the old school quarterback prototype in many different ways. He’s not athletic at all. All of his workout metrics on PlayerProfiler are in the 38th-percentile or lower. The two most impressive metrics lie in his production and tend to paint him as more of a cerebral quarterback. His 19.1 Breakout Age that falls in the 91st-percentile indicates that he was is a precocious prospect. His 80.9 College QBR places him in the 77th-percentile.

Fromm makes up for his lack of athleticism with his patience, maturity and overall efficiency. He makes up for his lack of arm talent and offensive dominance by making shorter accurate throws. He has many qualities that Tom Brady had entering the league. The question remains whether it’s enough in today’s game that is more enamored with either the Joe Burrow/Patrick Mahomes renegade field-stretcher type or the Lamar Jackson/Jalen Hurts duel threat variety.

Quez Watkins weighed 170-pounds coming out of high school and ran a verified 4.46 40-yard dash. He showed up to the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine weighing 185-pounds with greatly improved long speed. In any other Henry Ruggs-less year, a 4.35 (98th-percentile among qualified wide receivers) 40-yard dash would’ve been a much bigger deal. Because Watkins is 6-0, his 101.9 Speed Score is only a 74th-percentile mark.

Expected to be a Day 3 pick, Watkins declaring for the 2020 NFL Draft was considered a surprise move. He wins with straight-line speed but his relative lack of athleticism elsewhere keeps him from entering the John Brown/DeSean Jackson/T.Y. Hilton/Brandin Cooks bucket of elite speed receivers. He’s still a Top 20 receiver in our rookie rankings pending draft capital, and a dark horse to be this year’s Darius Slayton, a Day 3 pick with the wheels to make an early-career fantasy impact.

If people had to chose the top tight end from the 2020 class based on production, it would be difficult to not go with Brycen Hopkins. In a class that has many possible hits but no clear cut winner, studying the advanced stats and metrics for these players is even more crucial. His athleticism is as impressive as his 23.7-percent (72nd-percentile among qualified tight ends) College Dominator Rating. The only metric that is not ideal on his profile is his late 22.4 (13th-percentile) Breakout Age.

It’s never a good idea to draft rookie tight ends in redraft unless they are guaranteed hits. There are no guaranteed hits in the 2020 tight end class, so apply this to Hopkins. In dynasty rookie drafts, no 2020 tight end should be drafted before the fourth round. However, if he’s still hanging around at that point, he may be worth the gamble if the running back and wide receiver well has dried up.

Let’s think of everything we could want in a running back prospect at the next level. Early-age dominance, efficiency on the ground, pass-catching talent, and the ability to shoulder a big workload. Ohio State RB J.K. Dobbins has all of that. As a 19-year-old true freshman, he posted over 1,400 rushing yards and added 22 receptions on 26 targets, indicating that he is a natural in the passing game. Those stats carried over throughout his career, with him seeing a floor of 1,000 rushing yards and 20 receptions.

At the NFL Combine, Dobbins measured 5-10, 209-pounds. He doesn’t have the girth of Jonathan Taylor or D’Andre Swift, but his 30.0 (46th-percentile) Body Mass Index is plenty high. Plus, his 300-carry season should put any workload concerns to bed. He is also incredibly slippery, meaning he takes few big hits. According to Graham Barfield, Dobbins bested Taylor, Swift, Cam Akers and Clyde Edwards-Helaire in Yards Created Per Carry, highlighting his ability to generate in spite of his blocking.

Michael Warren checks a lot of boxes. He broke out before he was 20 years-old and, because of his sturdy build, has a 33.4 (95th-percentile among qualified running backs) Body Mass Index. Even though he resembles more of a bigger two-down bruiser, he had more than 20 receptions in each of his sophomore and junior seasons. He’s a solid prospect, supported by having a 32.7-percent (75th-percentile) College Dominator Rating and a 8.3-percent (61st-percentile) College Target Share.

Although he checks many boxes, he is a classic example of having a complimentary stat-line. This is due to volume and opportunity rather than having elite athleticism or being #exceptional at football. He is a Day Three pick at best. A team needs to be excited about his size and production for that to happen. Today’s NFL covets the Maserati-type running back as opposed to “trucks” like Warren.

If Joe Burrow didn’t engineer the most prolific college football season of all time, Tua Tagovailoa would be the consensus No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft. Alabama thrust Tagovailoa into comeback mode in the 2017 National Championship as a 19-year-old true freshman. He replaced Jalen Hurts in the second half and put on a show, coming from behind with three touchdown passes to defeat Georgia. After that performance, Tua was destined for stardom.

With last year’s hip injury seemingly a non-factor, Tagovailoa is expected to be a Top-10 pick in the NFL Draft. The Miami Dolphins are an obvious landing spot, but don’t be surprised if the Los Angeles Chargers trade up for the young gunslinger. No matter where he lands, he has show efficiency and accuracy at a young age and has the legs to be an impact player on the ground. Mobile quarterbacks possess the “Konami Code” in fantasy football, giving us an edge over our competition.