EBF
Footballguy
If you play in deep mandatory 2RB leagues, you know how hard it can be to find useful RBs. People reach for them in the rookie draft every year and it's very hard to acquire one without spending an early draft pick. As such, every year I am on the lookout for talented players who can be had for cheap. In the past I've stocked up on some guys like Bernard Pierce and Bryce Brown who didn't pan out, but I was also an early supporter of some relative success stories like Dion Lewis and Spencer Ware.
This year the player who has caught my attention is Green Bay rookie RB Devante Mays, who the Packers took in the late 7th round out of Utah State. Ty Montgomery (another player I heavily targeted as a rookie pick) is a good athlete, but he might not be ideally suited to touch the ball 15-20 times per game. He may not be more than a part-time player. This means that any of the rookies in Green Bay might have a chance to earn committee reps or maybe even win the starting job outright. Most of the attention is going to Jamaal Williams and Aaron Jones, and that makes sense since they were higher picks. However, these situations do not always play out in an obvious fashion. The Broncos took Montee Ball in the 2nd round of the 2013 draft, but their UDFA signing CJ Anderson ended up being the better NFL player. The same thing happened when the Saints drafted Antonio Pittman in the early 4th round in 2007, only to have UDFA Pierre Thomas beat him out for a roster spot. Once these guys get into a camp, it is an open competition and the best player wins.
I don't think Mays is an elite prospect or a lock for NFL success, but I would say the same about Montgomery/Williams/Jones. Those guys will cost you a fairly high rookie pick to acquire, but Mays is virtually free. Here is why I think he has a chance to be a factor here:
- Outstanding height/weight/speed explosiveness combination. At 5'10 1/4" and 230 pounds (32.8 BMI), he ran 4.52 at his pro day and jumped 40.5" in the vertical and 10'9" in the broad jump. Those are first round type of numbers for a player that size, although his three cone time was poor.
- Drafted in the 7th round despite only carrying the ball 37 times as a senior (injuries).
- Excellent production in 2015, rushing for 996 yards on 165 carries (5.9 YPC). Mays ranked 84th in the country in carries, but 71st in yards and 29th (!!) in runs of 20+ yards. His long run % of 6.7% was better than what Fournette (6.0%) and McCaffrey (5.6%) did that season.
- Looks like a decent player in his highlights. I don't like how easily he is tripped up by arm tackles for a 230 pound back, but he has some agility and speed, and is overall a pretty good runner.
None of this makes him a lock for pro success, but he actually shares a lot of similarities with CJ Anderson, who had a similar body type/running style/college production.
Mays has not been drafted in any leagues I've seen apart from where I've taken him (always with one of the last picks of the draft). You can get him uncontested for basically nothing. As long as you have a roster spot available, I recommend stashing him to see if he makes any noise in the preseason. If not, you can cut him and move on.
This year the player who has caught my attention is Green Bay rookie RB Devante Mays, who the Packers took in the late 7th round out of Utah State. Ty Montgomery (another player I heavily targeted as a rookie pick) is a good athlete, but he might not be ideally suited to touch the ball 15-20 times per game. He may not be more than a part-time player. This means that any of the rookies in Green Bay might have a chance to earn committee reps or maybe even win the starting job outright. Most of the attention is going to Jamaal Williams and Aaron Jones, and that makes sense since they were higher picks. However, these situations do not always play out in an obvious fashion. The Broncos took Montee Ball in the 2nd round of the 2013 draft, but their UDFA signing CJ Anderson ended up being the better NFL player. The same thing happened when the Saints drafted Antonio Pittman in the early 4th round in 2007, only to have UDFA Pierre Thomas beat him out for a roster spot. Once these guys get into a camp, it is an open competition and the best player wins.
I don't think Mays is an elite prospect or a lock for NFL success, but I would say the same about Montgomery/Williams/Jones. Those guys will cost you a fairly high rookie pick to acquire, but Mays is virtually free. Here is why I think he has a chance to be a factor here:
- Outstanding height/weight/speed explosiveness combination. At 5'10 1/4" and 230 pounds (32.8 BMI), he ran 4.52 at his pro day and jumped 40.5" in the vertical and 10'9" in the broad jump. Those are first round type of numbers for a player that size, although his three cone time was poor.
- Drafted in the 7th round despite only carrying the ball 37 times as a senior (injuries).
- Excellent production in 2015, rushing for 996 yards on 165 carries (5.9 YPC). Mays ranked 84th in the country in carries, but 71st in yards and 29th (!!) in runs of 20+ yards. His long run % of 6.7% was better than what Fournette (6.0%) and McCaffrey (5.6%) did that season.
- Looks like a decent player in his highlights. I don't like how easily he is tripped up by arm tackles for a 230 pound back, but he has some agility and speed, and is overall a pretty good runner.
None of this makes him a lock for pro success, but he actually shares a lot of similarities with CJ Anderson, who had a similar body type/running style/college production.
Mays has not been drafted in any leagues I've seen apart from where I've taken him (always with one of the last picks of the draft). You can get him uncontested for basically nothing. As long as you have a roster spot available, I recommend stashing him to see if he makes any noise in the preseason. If not, you can cut him and move on.