2013 RB Prospects

[JDouble]

Here are the guys I like. Feel free to agree, disagree, or post other guys that you may like.

Montee Ball - 5'10" 215lbs He is my number one rated RB in this draft. I think he has the potential to have a Marshal Faulk type career. Very versatile back. Only concern is the amount of carries he had in college. A lot of ware and tear. Probably going to go much to high for the Bucs to draft. Would not be surprised to see him go in the first round as the first RB selected.








Eddie Lacy - 5'10" 220lbs He is a fun guy to watch. Good mix of brute strength and finesse. I don't believe he is an elite prospect. I think he's more like a Chris Ivory type of guy. Solid back, but will probably be drafted much higher than he should be. Possibly first RB taken. Too high for the Bucs unless he slips for some reason.







Dennis Johnson 5'8" 212lbs  Another "muscle hamster" type guy. Very compact but run hard. Does well in the passing game. Change of direction is great. If he had greater top end speed he might be a top running back in this draft. The combine could be huge for this kid. He'd be a perfect fit as our #2 and could be drafted anywhere between round 3 and 6 depending on his senior bowl week and combine.











Le'Veon Bell - 6'2" 244lbs  This guy isn't real explosive. His top speed is lackluster, and I don't see him having too many long runs, but he is as big as Blount, pass protects well, catches very well, doesn't hesitate in short yardage, and is surprisingly agile and quick for a man his size. His stock is all over the place so I don't know when he'll be drafted, but I think he'd be a very good value in the 5th round or later.










Knile Davis 5'11" 230lbs  Davis is a large man that runs with power, but also runs with the agility, quickness and top end speed of a guy half his size. He missed all of 2012 with a broken ankle and his stocked has plummeted. He might not even be drafted, which is why I like him. He broke the same ankle in Highschool, again as a freshman, and then again last year...so it's obviously an issue. I wouldn't spend anything more than a 7th on him, but he has had about a year and a half to get healthy and he wouldn't be carrying the load here anyways, so he could be a steal for us.

[Feel Real Good]

When you say Ball and Lacy will go "too high" for the Bucs, do you mean they'll be gone by pick #13 or by the 3rd or 4th round when the Bucs might realistically think about drafting a running back?

[acacius]

Lacy seems like a guy who would pair well with Martin, but yeah.  I imagine he'll go too high for that to really be a good option for the team.

I wonder what round Lattimore will wind up going in.  Frankly, the team probably already has probably already gone to the boom/bust-prospects-with-injury-histories well too often, so I have a hard time seeing the team going for him either.  But it'll still be interesting to see who takes a chance on him and just how late he winds up going.

[GameTime]

When you say Ball and Lacy will go "too high" for the Bucs, do you mean they'll be gone by pick #13 or by the 3rd or 4th round when the Bucs might realistically think about drafting a running back?

have the Bucs publicly stated they plan on taking a RB by day 2 of the draft?

[acacius]

When you say Ball and Lacy will go "too high" for the Bucs, do you mean they'll be gone by pick #13 or by the 3rd or 4th round when the Bucs might realistically think about drafting a running back?

The latter, I'm sure.  There could easily be no running backs taken in the first.  If someone does sneak into the first round, it should be late in the first.

[bucs4eva]

Gio Bernard, best RB in the draft. I wish we could draft him, he's a home run hitter, but he'll be gone by the 2nd round the latest. Lacy will also be gone probably in the 2nd. Ball will be available in the 3rd-4th round.

[RoddyBama1]

A healthy Eddie Lacy is the best RB in this draft. My only question with him is the turf toe he dealt with the bulk of this season. If you watched Alabama's last 4-5 games when he finally was fully healthy, there was not a back in the country with a better combo of size, speed, and vision. Not to mention the spin move he is famous for!

He will be gone early 2nd if I had to make a guess, so too early for the Bucs, but if he did fall for some reason, I'd love to have him compliment Dougie Martin.

[Nicodemus]

I think you should also add Rex Burkhead to that list as well JD. If I was going to get a compliment back to Martin I'd draft Burkhead who can run and catch the ball very well. Although injured for a few games he did post stats of 24 for 140 and 1 TD rushing and 4 for 39 and a TD receiving against Georgia in the Capital One Bowl. I think he'd be a much better option for giving Martin a breather and as the 3rd down back over DJ Ware.

[Cerious]

Looking at the RBs that we have on this roster and the need to have a powerful running game with our offense, I would not be against drafting a RB in the second round. We need at least two good healthy backs on our roster and right now we only have one. I'd like to revisit this idea after we make our FA moves.

[1sparkybuc]

Too many needs on defense to pick a RB early. Knile Davis on day 3 to replace UDFA Blount since Blount is nothing more than insurance anyway.

[John Galt?]

I am a firm believer in drafting RBs if you need them and not getting them in FA. Their shelf life is so short by the time they usually hit FA, they are over-the-hill.

I also don't see us getting a #2 RB until R3 or later so forget Ball or Lacy. More likely Gillislee or Jonathon Frankiln type in R3 or probably R4 where we have 2 picks

[JDouble]

When you say Ball and Lacy will go "too high" for the Bucs, do you mean they'll be gone by pick #13 or by the 3rd or 4th round when the Bucs might realistically think about drafting a running back?

The latter. I don't see us taking a RB before the fourth round. Maybe the 3rd if the right guy fell.

[nybuccguy]

In my opinion we can only consider bruiser type running backs. We desperately need someone who can handle shot yardage and goal line carries. That type of back would be the perfect compliment to Martins shifty running style.

[BucBalla85]

Agree. They will probably draft one later than 3rd round. I dont think he needs to be a bruiser. They just need somebody who can take a bit of the load off Martin. 

[BucNY]

I really hope we don't waste a high pick on RB. I wouldn't mind a power back for short yardage situations but between Dougie and Ware we're set at RB.