I think this debate will pick up during the next CFB season. Right now I think most people would have Gurley #1. Big dude with solid agility and speed who can catch passes. If I have a question mark about him, it's that he looks a bit heavy-footed and sluggish for the first few yards at times. Even though he has some fast track times on his CV, I don't know that he plays with a great deal of suddenness/explosiveness.
Gordon is more electric, but also not nearly as put together. He's got a little bit of that lanky straight-line speedster McFadden thing going on, but to his credit he shows more elusiveness and quicker feet/hips than what DMC showed at Arkansas. He's also a bit stronger through the lower body. The thing that scares me apart from the build is that it seems like a lot of his yards come on gimmicky sweeps. Those won't work in the NFL.
Close for me between those two right now. I don't have a strong leaning either way. I owned the #2 devy pick in one league, but traded it away. I can't say this dilemma has concerned me much the past few months and it's not something that I'll really think much about again until next Fall.
Sort of like Mike Davis as a solid height/weight/speed guy with decent running ability and good production. My early hunch is that he's closer to Ben Tate (2nd round pick) than Doug Martin (1st round pick). Would not rule him out as an eventual 1st round possibility though.
Really like Ameer, but he's got a different body type and he's quicker than fast. Some of his cuts are insane. He can catch the ball too. Very athletic and very productive. Despite the workload he's handled at Nebraska, I think he's best suited to a commitee role as sort of a Warrick Dunn type of guy.
And of course I have to throw out a Mike Dyer shoutout. Prodigious height/weight/speed athlete. Advanced age, lack of receiving skills, and checkered off-field issues will ensure he's a late pick if not a UDFA. I'll continue to tout him as a nice bargain play on the basis of his rare raw ability.
Not super high on Karlos Williams, Keith Marshall, or Byron Marshall. Do like Keith's speed and quickness, but wonder about his physical constitution. Williams too upright and sprinter-y for me to really get behind. Intrigued by Shock Linwood. Not sure if he's an A level athlete or more of a backup guy. It's hard to tell how much his numbers owe to his talent and how much the system.
1. Why did you trade away your 1.2 pick and for what in return?
2. I've become a big fan of Ameer......hope you're wrong about the committee.
3. You've stuck with Dyer through thick (and I mean THICK) and thin and I'm starting to see him move up on most draftnick's board. I gave up on him a long time ago but you've stuck in there and he just might be turning things around which is great for him.
4. I do like both Marshalls (maybe because my last name is Marshall) but what I don't like about Karlos is that he looks very stiff when he runs. Too stiff for my liking.
5. What about Yeldon?
I traded the 1.02 dev straight up for Jordan Cameron. That league is 1.5 PPR for TE with TE/WR occupying the same starting slots. He was #16 WR/TE in that league last year, so right around guys like Jordy, VJax, and Fitzgerald in production.
There is some risk of regression with him, but also some risk that Gurley/Gordon/Davis/etc end up like McFadden/Trent/Beanie. It's easy to forget that only a fraction of even the top college guys will become reliable FF assets. That being the case, I felt fine with the move.
I am a big fan of Ameer too. Electric game tape and great production on the stat sheet. Atypical body though. Deceptively strong, but just not the biggest guy around. I like the idea of using him as a Dunn type who gets 180-200 carries and loads of catches. I think he's underrated by the dev community. I also think he's unlikely to be a 1st round pick though. He's neither huge nor exceptionally fast (i.e 4.3X). You usually have to check at least one of those boxes to go in the 1st.
As far as Dyer goes, I've said it all before. Rare physical talent. People talked about Isaiah Crowell being this year's Christine Michael. Well, Crowell was a prep sensation and an impact frosh, but he never had the first round workout metrics. Dyer will never be a 1st round pick at this point, but...if you want your next workout monster at RB, he's a strong contender. Guy will look like a million bucks at the combine and probably run 4.4X and jump out of the gym at something like 5'9" 215-220. The baggage and age will kill his draft stock, but get him on the field in training camp and he'll look the part from day one.
On the fence about Yeldon. Looks the part in terms of the height/weight/speed numbers and his production. Alabama has some pretty good backs in the stable and he's managed to outcompete them all. Obviously he has a lot of talent. His funky running style sticks out in a bad way to me. He'll be in the mix next year. I can't say he's one of my personal favorites, but I'd still consider him in the top 4-5 picks of a dev draft.