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Dallas Cowboys Draft: 10 Running Back Prospects To Know

By Adithya Prabakaran

LAWRENCE, KS - NOVERMBER 3: Running back David Montgomery #32 of the Iowa State Cyclones stiff arms cornerback Julian Chandler #10 of the Kansas Jayhawks as he rushes in the first quarter at Memorial Stadium on November 3, 2018 in Lawrence, Kansas. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)
LAWRENCE, KS - NOVERMBER 3: Running back David Montgomery #32 of the Iowa State Cyclones stiff arms cornerback Julian Chandler #10 of the Kansas Jayhawks as he rushes in the first quarter at Memorial Stadium on November 3, 2018 in Lawrence, Kansas. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images) /
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PALO ALTO, CA – NOVEMBER 10: Connor O’Brien #29 of the Washington Huskies tries to tackle Bryce Love #20 of the Stanford Cardinal with a hand to the face at Stanford Stadium on November 10, 2017 in Palo Alto, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /

Bryce Love, Stanford

What’s Good: Athleticism, Elusiveness
What Ain’t Good: Injury, Size

Not a single running back in this class has been hurt more than Bryce Love in 2018. (Literally) The Heisman runner up for the 2017 season had the choice to leave a season early for the Draft and a substantially bigger payday. It’s now 2019, Love averaged 4.5 yards per carry in his senior season tallying for a whopping total 739 yards and 6 touchdowns according to Sports Reference.

Coming back to school in order to graduate proved to be the worst decision for Love. But can you fault him for wanting to complete his education at one of the best institutes in America with the hopes he’ll be a doctor someday? The price some pay for preparing for their future is quite heart-breaking…

Fortunately for Love, all is not lost. When healthy and behind a good offensive line, he was Top 5 in every rushing category for the entire NCAA. He has the speed that scouts drool over, he has the elusiveness that makes him hard to bring down, and he has the intellect to make smaller plays into long runs.

It just so happens Bryce Love happens to be good at catching the ball. Nothing new from a Stanford running back at this point.

Love had the resume and was a lock to be an early second round pick after last season. Even with his production and ACL injury, not too much has changed in regards to his ability. He’s still extremely fast, elusive, and intelligent, but his stock has dipped because the thing that always bothered scouts, his size.

This season, his size gave way to a serious injury and other wear and tear that came as a result of his production. While his size allows for his quick and nimble running, injuries like his ACL tear can happen more frequently leading to a shortened career. How long will a 5’9″ and 200 pound body hold up?

Could he be a Cowboy?:

Most definitely. The Cowboys look for guys like these all the time. Players who have the production but an injury history will cause them to slide in the draft. Usually it happens in the second round but what’s stopping them from doing it in a later round, especially for a running back?

Could I have been over-analyzing Love’s size and injury? Yes. Do I also love the idea of the Cowboys landing the Stanford product? Yes. His speed and quickness would be an excellent complement to Zeke. Having a speedy guy like Love would allow Zeke to come off the field for 3rd downs or any passing sequence. Just having a speedy threat would cause opposing defenses to react differently.

In two years as Christian McCaffrey’s backup, Bryce averaged well over 10 yards per catch. With Kellen Moore being dubbed an offensive guru in the building, could we see similar production from Love as we did in his first two years?

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