NFL's Future

2013 NFL Draft Running Back Rankings

Posted by Brad On January - 29 - 2013

"Eddie Lacy"The 2013 NFL Draft could mark the third year in a row that an Alabama running back is the first running back off the board. After a spectacular performance in the National Championship game, Eddie Lacy may have secured his spot at the top of this running back class.

The biggest upside of Lacy’s game is the lack of carries. He has shared carries with Trent Richardson and T.J. Yeldon while at ‘Bama which in today’s NFL is viewed as a plus. The shelf life of NFL backs appears to be trending downward so the fewer the collegiate carries, the better. Lacy is a perfect blend of size, speed, vision, and shiftiness that could warrant a first round selection.

After Lacy, this class proves to be one of the deepest groupings in the 2013 NFL Draft. The class is loaded in the 3rd-4th round range with guys that should be able to compete early for starting gigs with the teams selecting them.

The kicker in this class will be the health of Marcus Lattimore who suffered a devastating knee injury in October. Lattimore was noted as walking without a limp at the Senior Bowl which would be a positive sign for his rehabilitation efforts thus far. Lattimore was the unquestioned top back in the class before the injury and will provide some intrigue in the early rounds.

After the break, check out our 2013 NFL Draft running back rankings.

RANK PLAYER SCHOOL HEIGHT WEIGHT
1 EDDIE LACY ALABAMA 6000 220
2 JOSEPH RANDLE OKLAHOMA ST 6010 200
3 JOHNATHAN FRANKLIN UCLA 5100 201
4 GIOVANI BERNARD NORTH CAROLINA 5010 205
5 STEPFAN TAYLOR STANFORD 5090 216
6 MARCUS LATTIMORE SOUTH CAROLINA 6000 218
7 JAWAN JAMISON RUTGERS 6060 213
8 MIKE GILLISLEE FLORIDA 5112 207
9 CIERRE WOOD NOTRE DAME 6000 215
10 MONTEE BALL WISCONSIN 5011 212
11 CHRISTINE MICHAEL TEXAS A&M 5096 221
12 ROBBIE ROUSE FRESNO STATE 5057 186
13 RAY GRAHAM PITT 5093 192
14 LE’VEON BELL MICHIGAN ST 6020 244
15 ANDRE ELLINGTON CLEMSON 5097 197
16 KENJON BARNER OREGON 5092 188
17 D.J. HARPER BOISE ST 5093 207
18 ZAC STACY VANDERBILT 5083 215
19 DENNIS JOHNSON ARKANSAS 5090 213
20 KERWYNN WILLIAMS UTAH ST 5076 196
21 GEORGE WINN CINCINNATI 5105 218
22 KNILE DAVIS ARKANSAS 6000 226
23 REX BURKHEAD NEBRASKA 5011 210
24 MONTEL HARRIS TEMPLE 5080 206
25 THEO RIDDICK NOTRE DAME 5011 200
26 STEFPHON JEFFERSON NEVADA 5011 210
27 MIGUEL MAYSONET STONY BROOK 5090 204
28 MICHAEL HILL MISSOURI WESTERN 5010 204
29 MIKE JAMES MIAMI 5011 222
30 SPENCER WARE LSU 5011 225
31 ONTERIO MCCALEBB AUBURN 5101 164
32 ZACH LINE SMU 6003 233
33 JERMAINE COOK YOUNGSTOWN ST 5084 209
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  • neighborhooddrunkpart2

    Yay, another overrated Alabama player ranked #1! On a serious note, I hope the Steelers draft either draft JOSEPH RANDLE, GIOVANI BERNARD, STEPFAN TAYLOR,
    DENNIS JOHNSON, RAY GRAHAM, JAWAN JAMISON, MIKE GILLISLEE or GEORGE WINN.

    • bradc11

      Love you some Eddie Lacy??? No love for Johnathan Franklin either, you’re killing me. I do like a lot of these 2nd tier RB’s. Might be a good year to wait and take a guy like Mike Gillislee in the 3-4 round range.

      • neighborhooddrunkpart2

        No, but I do love Chance Warmack and Barrett Jones though. Johnny Franklin is cool, I just like the guys I name more though. Would not be mad if the steelers draft him.

  • Bex_R1986

    Hehe, now this one is very interesting! This varies hugely from mine.

    A couple questions spring to mind: Gio Bernard was a first rounder (I think he went 18th in an earlier mock you), now slipping to 4th. As far as I know, he hasn’t had any reason for his stock to lower. Was this a change of heart after more study? I still think he’s not too far behind Lacy.

    Andre Ellington is also quite low. I know you weren’t his biggest fan coming into the year, but he answered some questions on his toughness and his explosiveness warrants a higher placing for me.

    Did Perkins declare? I thought he was returning.

    1 Eddie Lacy Alabama; 2 Giovani Bernard, North Carolina; 3 Jawan Jamison, Rutgers; 4 Andre Ellington, Clemson; 5 Montee Ball Wisconsin; 6 Stepfan Taylor Stanford; 7 Johnathan Franklin UCLA; 8 Joseph Randle Oklahoma State; 9 Christine Michael Texas A&M; 10 Kenjon Barner Oregon; 11 Mike Gillislee Florida; 12 Ray Graham Pittsburgh; 13 Marcus Lattimore South Carolina; 14 Le’Veon Bell Michigan State; 15 Rex Burkhead Nebraska; 16 Stefphon Jefferson Nevada; 17 Miguel Maysonet Stony Brook; 18 Cierre Wood Notre Dame; 19 Dennis Johnson Arkansas; 20 Spencer Ware LSU; 21 Kerwynn Williams Utah State; 22 Zac Stacy Vanderbilt; 23 George Winn Cincinnati; 24 Montel Harris Temple; 25 Robbie Rouse Fresno State; 26 Theo Riddick Notre Dame; 27 Knile Davis Arkansas; 28 Orwin Smith Georgia Tech; 29 D.J. Harper Boise State; 30 Latavius Murray UCF

    • bradc11

      Not that I had a change of heart but after watching and comparing him to the other RB’s he fell to fourth, still carries a second round grade. The more I watched of Franklin and Randle, the more I liked. I have been high on Franklin all season but hadn’t watched enough of Randle. Now that I’m wrapping up tape I’m starting to get a good feel for a lot of these guys. One guy to watch is D.J. Harper. He’s a solid back that had a rough go of it at Boise. If he can stay healthy he could wind up being a steal in the draft. My fault on Perkins…he was a leftover, I’ll make the change…thanks for the heads up.

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