Watched some running backs...
Jerimiyah Love, Notre Dame - Balance, power, athleticism, hips, speed, vision, receiving ability, 3 down back, bellcow, contact balance, defensive nightmare. I could go on all day. Instead, I'll focus on three things I see with him that he needs work on. 1) He's good in pass protection, but bigger edges tend to be able to move him back. He struggles to anchor down - this could be a technique because he clearly has the leg/hip drive when you watch him run. 2) The ball gets away from his body when he is making some of the spectacular moves that he makes. When he hurdles (which he does way too often) the ball comes away from him at times. Could be a potential issue down the line. 3) When watching him... he really likes to bounce everything to the sideline. He'll hit interior gaps (though if you watch him on 'Power' sometimes he misses the gap (very correctable) with no issues, but ultimately he tries to work himself to the sideline. At times, this can be good. At other times, this can be horizontal yards instead of productive yards.
Jonah Coleman, Washington - Rekentless motor. A much bigger back at around 230. Surprisingly quick feet for his size. Very strong, good vision and he is a finisher. You can try to tackle him and you might succeed but he is going to make you pay for it. He has stiffer hips as he is more of a big back than a finesse one and while he has adequate speed, he isn't a burner. He is a true bellcow. You don't need to worry much about durability. Never missed a game at Washington. Better zone scheme guy than gap, but can do all of it. Above average as a receiver. For his size, he is a touch disappointing in pass protection. He's not bad, but you'd expect a guy this size to be a brick wall, but sometimes his head goes down and he gets cracked. Also, being 5-9, when defenses get a little bit crazier with their blitz packages he misidentifies his targets.
Kaytron Allen, Penn State - I try not to use other prospects when I evaluate backs - but I watch Allen and see Jerimiyah Love + Jonah Coleman. He's also 5-11, 217ish pounds. So he's almost directly in between the two of them from a size perspective, too. I don't think this makes him some sort of Frankenstein's monster variant between them. He has positives and negatives. But his style is a mesh of the two. He is patient and lets holes develop. He has good change of direction and uses his leverage to set up blocks to help break him into the second level. I think his straight line speed is slower than Coleman's, but his change of direction is much better. He's not great in pass pro or as a pass catcher, though. So he is limited in his skillset.
Jadarian Pierce, Notre Dame - Pierce isn't afraid to get downhill. He seeks out contact and his balance into contact is uncanny. He can get to the sideline or run straight up the gut and make you pay. He is another guy who sets up his blocks with leverage. He can also return kicks and returns them like a running back, not a receiver. He runs through defenders on kick returns. When you watch him run, guys try to swipe at his legs a lot, but he typically tends to get that foot up and down by a constant churning of his legs and runs directly through that contact. He had an achilles injury in 2024 - so durability may be a concern (though I'm not particularly concerned at this point) and his role as a true bellcow is untested. He's just okay in pass protection. Has good hands.
Emmett Johnson, Nebraska - When he hits a hole, he hits the hole. Of all the backs I watched he was the most decisive. He doesn't dance. Once he makes a decision he goes to that spot and hits that hole with reckless intent. But it's not really reckless. He keeps his eyes up, reads second level defensive flow and understands his line's positioning and he still navigates traffic. He has quick feet and his use of stutters helps to open running lanes for him. His stutters don't cause him to slow much, he does it in such a natural way and his stutter to full speed ability is really high end. He's safe and he protects the ball. He is a natural pass catcher and is extremely versatile in the backfield. He's not all that fast. He can break one, but he needs to get into the open field quickly to do it. He's faster than Coleman and Allen, I think. He had 46 receptions in '25. He's an all around back. He's not a power guy, though he doesn't shy from it. His pass protection is just okay and he isn't a home run hitter.
Nick Singleton, Penn State - Uh... this guy is 230 pounds and he is the fastest back in this grouping of backs. May be the best pass protector of this grouping of backs, too. Guy squats 665 pounds and benches 435 and runs a 4.35 forty. He's decisive as a runner and he is a natural pass catcher. He is a true all around back with the best speed to power ratio in the running back class and I'm not sure it's all that close in that department. He has good change of direction in the backfield while waiting for holes to develop, but his second level CoD is a bit different. Once he is beyond the LoS, he's not going to make many guys miss. He has stiff hips and he needs to continue to improve his stiff arm for such a powerful guy - he misses the placement on it way too often. Oh, and he returns kicks.
Demond Claiborne, Wake Forest - Good runner, runs through arm tackles, hits creases and runs with a great balance and has great lateral agility. Adequate pass catcher. He's smaller (not too small for the NFL, but smaller), doesn't anchor well in pass protection and can get too jumpy in the backfield and miss open lanes. If defenders square up on him, he is usually going down. If they try to arm tackle him, he will break those tackles. Great kick returner and he has great hands. He's a good back, likely to be a guy that can hang on NFL rosters for awhile, but I don't see him as a difference maker.
1. Jerimiyah Love, Notre Dame
2. Nick Singleton, Penn State
3. Emmett Johnson, Nebraska
4. Jonah Coleman, Washington
5. Jadarian Pierce, Notre Dame
6. Kaytron Allen, Penn State
7. Demond Claiborne, Wake Forest
If we don't take Love at 7, and let's be clear - I think he is the most special back in this group with the best overall skill set and absolute game changing ability, the next two guys in my ranking are who we NEED to come away with in this draft - even if we add a high end FA at the position. Nick Singleton and Emmett Johnson are both guys, who play slightly different than one another, but are what we need. Versatile backs who can fit multiple schemes. It was hard for me to differentiate Singleton and Johnson, to be honest. Singleton's speed to power ratio is unreal and with some improvements in his hips he could wind up being an incredible NFL back. Johnson is just so decisive and intelligent with his cuts and vision that he literally creates yards with his mind.