We did a mock draft and a mock auction for the magazine (which is being printed onto paper as we speak). In both, there were complaints about where Carlos Hyde was selected. Some of the guys thought he was drafted too early in the mock, and others complained that he went for too much in the auction.
I like Hyde myself. With the way Chip Kelly puts together running games, I think he has a really good chance of being one of the league’s top-5 rushers (and by he, I mean Hyde and definitely not Kelly).
I saw a blurb go by this morning indicating Hyde could also be used a lot more in the passing game than in the past. There was a blurb posted on the 49ers official team site yesterday quoting Kelly as saying he really likes what Hyde is showing as a receiver at the OTAs.
“He’s got really, really good hands,” Kelly said. “He made a really nice catch (on Tuesday) in the flats on a difficult throw. It’s interesting from someone that size and that has that skillset as a guy coming out of the backfield. So, it’s certainly something we need to continue to build upon with him.”
The article was written, by the way, by Joe Fann. Believe it or not, he grew up in my housing development, about 10 houses away. We’d talk football when he was a teenager, then he went off to school down at Chapman College in Los Angeles. Previous he worked for the Titans. Now he’s quietly a former Seahawks-territory guy working for the division-rival 49ers.
Anyway, put me down as a thumbs-up guy on Hyde. I think he’ll be very good as a runner, and looks like he could, well, “chip” in as a pass catcher as well. Over the last three years, Kelly’s offenses in Philly ranked in the top 10 in both catches and receiving yards. Only 5 TD receptions in those 48 games, but you don’t get everything.
| RECEPTIONS BY RUNNING BACKS SINCE 2013 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | Rec | Yards | Avg | TD |
| New Orleans | 430 | 3,247 | 7.6 | 13 |
| Detroit | 359 | 3,225 | 9.0 | 14 |
| San Diego | 329 | 2,618 | 8.0 | 14 |
| Atlanta | 325 | 2,436 | 7.5 | 17 |
| Oakland | 298 | 2,330 | 7.8 | 10 |
| Baltimore | 294 | 1,960 | 6.7 | 8 |
| Buffalo | 266 | 2,010 | 7.6 | 8 |
| Philadelphia | 262 | 2,120 | 8.1 | 5 |
| New England | 261 | 2,350 | 9.0 | 15 |
| Chicago | 260 | 2,260 | 8.7 | 13 |
| Kansas City | 254 | 2,152 | 8.5 | 19 |
| Pittsburgh | 246 | 2,081 | 8.5 | 4 |
| Indianapolis | 238 | 1,948 | 8.2 | 15 |
| Tampa Bay | 234 | 1,834 | 7.8 | 7 |
| Dallas | 231 | 1,821 | 7.9 | 1 |
| Jacksonville | 224 | 1,627 | 7.3 | 3 |
| Houston | 223 | 1,702 | 7.6 | 12 |
| Cleveland | 216 | 1,611 | 7.5 | 8 |
| Washington | 215 | 2,023 | 9.4 | 9 |
| Denver | 215 | 1,707 | 7.9 | 6 |
| Cincinnati | 214 | 1,821 | 8.5 | 7 |
| Minnesota | 213 | 1,477 | 6.9 | 4 |
| NY Giants | 212 | 1,668 | 7.9 | 6 |
| Arizona | 211 | 1,989 | 9.4 | 10 |
| Miami | 206 | 1,653 | 8.0 | 8 |
| Tennessee | 205 | 1,612 | 7.9 | 10 |
| St. Louis | 205 | 1,593 | 7.8 | 3 |
| NY Jets | 204 | 1,533 | 7.5 | 6 |
| Green Bay | 197 | 1,712 | 8.7 | 10 |
| San Francisco | 179 | 1,501 | 8.4 | 3 |
| Seattle | 169 | 1,497 | 8.9 | 14 |
| Carolina | 165 | 1,352 | 8.2 | 9 |
—Ian Allan