Kenyan Drake isn’t practicing today. He’s on the side wearing a walking boot. It’s not considered to be a big deal, but it’s a reminder that Drake isn’t as proven as most of the league’s starting running backs.
Kliff Kingsbury, per Bob McManaman of the Arizona Republic, says the Cardinals are just being cautious with Drake – that it’s not much of an injury. Drake definitely will be ready to roll in Week 1.
But Drake has never shown he can be a durable, full-time back. He’s been more of a third-down and change-of-pace guy for the bulk of his time in the public eye – both in college and in the pros.
In three-plus years with the Dolphins, Drake never ran for 650 yards in a season. After a midseason trade to Arizona last year, he ran for 643 yards in the second half of the season. That was good, productive work, but he did it for only a half of a season.
At Alabama, Drake always shared time with other talented backs. He ran for 281, 694, 112 and 408 yards in his four seasons there. While he was with the Crimson Tide, he shared the stage with four other backs who were also selected with second- or third-round picks: Eddie Lacy, T.J. Yeldon, Derrick Henry and Damien Harris.
Drake is a leaner guy, built more like a wide receiver than a running back (6-1, 211). So good chance, I’m thinking, that Chase Edmonds will have to start some games at some point. Edmonds is one of my favorite backup running backs.
It’s what Drake might do if he can stay healthy that will get him chosen before the third round in every draft. He put up 966 total yards in the second half of last year, more than all but three other running backs.
| BACKS WITH 500+ YARDS IN FINAL EIGHT GAMES | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Run | Rec | Total | TD |
| Christian McCaffrey, Car. | 506 | 642 | 1,148 | 6 |
| Derrick Henry, Ten. | 959 | 78 | 1,037 | 12 |
| Joe Mixon, Cin. | 817 | 177 | 994 | 5 |
| Kenyan Drake, Ariz. | 643 | 323 | 966 | 8 |
| Saquon Barkley, NYG | 630 | 277 | 907 | 5 |
| Ezekiel Elliott, Dall. | 616 | 244 | 860 | 8 |
| Nick Chubb, Cle. | 691 | 117 | 808 | 2 |
| Austin Ekeler, LAC | 306 | 486 | 792 | 3 |
| Miles Sanders, Phil. | 524 | 235 | 759 | 4 |
| Melvin Gordon, LAC | 500 | 259 | 759 | 7 |
| Aaron Jones, G.B. | 618 | 119 | 737 | 8 |
| Chris Carson, Sea. | 571 | 117 | 688 | 4 |
| Alvin Kamara, N.O. | 424 | 257 | 681 | 4 |
| Todd Gurley, LAR | 502 | 126 | 628 | 7 |
| Leonard Fournette, Jac. | 361 | 259 | 620 | 2 |
| Adrian Peterson, Was. | 515 | 93 | 608 | 4 |
| Devin Singletary, Buff. | 508 | 91 | 599 | 1 |
| LeVeon Bell, NYJ | 374 | 219 | 593 | 2 |
| Raheem Mostert, S.F. | 465 | 112 | 577 | 8 |
| Mark Ingram, Balt. | 433 | 122 | 555 | 8 |
| Phillip Lindsay, Den. | 519 | 36 | 555 | 3 |
| Carlos Hyde, Hou. | 526 | 20 | 546 | 3 |
| Dalvin Cook, Min. | 312 | 226 | 538 | 4 |
| David Montgomery, Chi. | 483 | 52 | 535 | 2 |
| Ronald Jones, T.B. | 343 | 185 | 528 | 3 |
—Ian Allan