Darren McFadden and Felix Jones just announced that they will both be heading to the NFL next year. While I think this is great for McFadden, Jones could have proven himself with one full year as 'the man' in Fayetteville. Either way, Jones and McFadden will both likely go in the first round, maybe even as the top two backs overall.
The running back class just keeps getting deeper and deeper as more and more backs are choosing cash over college. While both will do well at the next level, the mass of backs who are entering this year is going to slightly water down the product for a league that isn't hungry for expensive and unproven young kids in the backfield. For every Adrian Peterson, there is a handful of Ryan Grant's out there.
Don't be too surprised now if there are at least a couple of backs who second guess their draft stock and pull out. With the sheer volume of junior backs that have now declared, coming back and entering next season's draft as a senior, in what looks to be a shallow pool might be the best option.
As for Arkansas, they are now left with juniors Michael Smith and Brandon Barnett as the top returning backs for the team and you can bet your house now that new head coach Bobby Petrino will be trying his darnedest to convince some new recruits to come down and play for the Razorbacks and get some playing time right away. In the recruiting world, this could shake things up a lot, especially when it comes to Ryan Mallett's school of choice.Labels: Bobby Petrino, Darren McFadden, Felix Jones, Ryan Mallett |
