Walton's draft stock

10+ RBs from non-P5 schools, some from FCS schools were drafted in 2017.

NFL Draft 2017 Picks by Position - ESPN Draftcast


I guess these 10+ teams didn't care what these guys did against P5 schools.

Overall, 20+ RBs were drafted. If Walton declares like a lot of us expect him to do, he'll get drafted.

I would guess that most of those non P5 backs didn't have much tape against P5 opponents.

Walton does, and it's not terribly impressive.

The difference is that of the 12 Non-P5 RB's taken, 9 had a ypc of of 6.0 or better. All had a ypc of 5.4 or more.

Walton has a ypc of 5.1, and 5.1 ypc was the lowest of any of the 26 RB's drafted last year.

He's also scored 28 TDs in 30 games while running behind a subpar OL.

But 25% of Walton's career TD's came against FAU. Walton scored 11 TD's vs. ACC opponents. Yearby scored 8 TD's vs. ACC opponents. It's not much of a difference.

But that "subpar" OL lost a starter last and Homer put up numbers that would've been Walton's best game of his career.

Homer is going to put up numbers this year that Walton never did or could. Yearby had a much higher ypc running behind the same OL for 2 years.

At some point people will realize "terrible OL" play was really just an excuse. Not saying the OL was great, but it's been over exaggerated.
 
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An NFL scout had him all the way around 2-3 round pre injury. Guessing 5-6 now

We were hearing about how NFL scouts had Kaaya as a first rounder before last season. I take those projections with a proverbial grain of salt.

QB stock is volatile, going back to the great Jevan Snead. RB's usually are what they are.

The scout is seeing the same thing I'm seeing with Walton: a 2nd-3rd round talent. He can catch, pass protect, he's smart and he has great initial burst.

He picked a bad year to get hurt because this is a loaded RB draft. But if his prognosis is 100% recovery before training camp, he's a steal on Day 3.

I don't know man. Walton Jr. is a skilled football player. He knows how to play the position and seems to be a real student of the game. But ultimately he's not big and he's not that explosive. RBs taken that early are usually big or very explosive, or (ideally) both. I think he's a better NFL prospect than Yearby, and he'll get drafted, but the preseason Walton Jr. Heisman hype was out of control for a guy with a very limited highlight reel against P5 opposition. I see no fall off from Walton Jr. to Homer.
 
The flaw in Walton's game is his inability or unwillingness to lower his shoulder pads and just pound out 2 or 3 yards when nothing's there. Too often drives died because we ran for 0 or negative yards on first or second down.

Homer gained 170 yards on 20 carries against the #6 rush defense in the country behind a banged up O-line, but the most impressive stat line of all? He was only stopped for no gain on 1 of his 20 carries. The other 19 times he touched the ball he made it out of the backfield. That's big boy football.
 
Current injury alone lowers his draft stock. NFL teams are leary taking guys coming off of injuries. Walton has an injury currently affecting his running ability. So many good prospects coming out at RB, and considering most RB's have short productive careers, why take a chance?

Right now? 5th or 6th round. Might not even be drafted.
 
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6th but depending on the talent coming out of college this year, possibly later. He has Mike James type versatility and work ethic, but the injury will hurt his stock.
 
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