Andre Williams opened some eyes with a strong preseason debut in the Hall of Fame Game. It looks like the Giants might have uncovered a future starting running back in their fourth-round pick.
They're not alone. The Falcons (Devonta Freeman) and Patriots (James White) also selected running backs in the fourth round of this year's draft, and both of those players are also drawing a lot of preseason accolades. The three other fourth-round running backs selected in April -- KaDeem Carey in Chicago, Lorenzo Taliaferro in Baltimore, and DeAnthony Thomas in Kansas City -- are all candidates for significant roles with their teams this year. Carey will probably be Matt Forte's primary backup. Thomas could fill the old Dexter McCluster role in Kansas City. Taliaferro is less likely to do anything, but it might only take an injury to Ray Rice or Bernard Pierce for him to be a significant part of that offense.
Even if it's only Williams, Freeman and White who amount to anything in the NFL, that trio will be beating the odds for fourth-rounders. The table below shows the 52 running backs selected in the fourth round this century. In only one of the 14 seasons have three of those players amounted to anything in the NFL. That was 2005, which produced Darren Sproles, Marion Barber and Brandon Jacobs, all of whom had decent NFL careers.
The best players from that time frame are listed in bold. The jury is still out on some of the recent picks (Lamar Miller, for example), but it's unlikely any recent year will be as good as 2014 looks at this early stage.
FOURTH-ROUND RUNNING BACKS, 2000-2013 | ||
---|---|---|
Year | Player | Team |
2013 | Johnathan Franklin | Packers |
2013 | Marcus Lattimore | 49ers |
2012 | Robert Turbin | Seahawks |
2012 | Lamar Miller | Dolphins |
2011 | Roy Helu | Washington |
2011 | Kendall Hunter | 49ers |
2011 | Bilal Powell | Jets |
2011 | Delone Carter | Colts |
2011 | Owen Marecic | Browns |
2011 | Taiwan Jones | Raiders |
2011 | Jamie Harper | Titans |
2010 | Joe McKnight | Jets |
2009 | Mike Goodson | Panthers |
2009 | Andre Brown | Giants |
2009 | Gartrell Johnson | Chargers |
2008 | Tashard Choice | Cowboys |
2007 | Michael Bush | Raiders |
2007 | Antonio Pittman | Saints |
2007 | Dwayne Wright | Bills |
2006 | Leon Washington | Jets |
2006 | P.J. Daniels | Ravens |
2005 | Marion Barber | Cowboys |
2005 | Brandon Jacobs | Giants |
2005 | Darren Sproles | Chargers |
2005 | Ciatrick Fason | Vikings |
2005 | Manuel White | Washington |
2005 | Alvin Pearman | Jaguars |
2004 | Mewelde Moore | Vikings |
2004 | Cedric Cobbs | Patriots |
2003 | Domanick Davis | Texans |
2003 | Onterrio Smith | Vikings |
2003 | Lee Suggs | Browns |
2003 | Artose Pinner | Lions |
2003 | Quentin Griffin | Broncos |
2003 | Jeremi Johnson | Bengals |
2003 | Justin Griffith | Falcons |
2003 | LaBrandon Toefield | Jaguars |
2003 | Ovie Mughelli | Ravens |
2002 | Jonathan Wells | Texans |
2002 | Omar Easy | Kansas City |
2002 | Travis Stephens | Buccaneers |
2002 | Jamar Martin | Cowboys |
2002 | Najeh Davenport | Packers |
2001 | Correll Buckhalter | Eagles |
2001 | Rudi Johnson | Bengals |
2001 | George Layne | Kansas City |
2001 | Moran Norris | Saints |
2000 | Terrelle Smith | Saints |
2000 | Curtis Keaton | Bengals |
2000 | Aaron Shea | Browns |
2000 | Frank Moreau | Kansas City |
2000 | Deon Dyer | Dolphins |
--Andy Richardson