As training camps approach, we're getting closer to seeing how the incoming rookies might work into their new offenses. One such player is Chargers sixth-round running back Kimani Vidal, competing with some veterans for snaps in Jim Harbaugh's new offense. Sleeper candidate?
Harbaugh's Chargers are going to emphasize the run, that much is certain. That was his approach at Michigan, and it was new coordinator Greg Roman's approach in Baltimore. Most likely, it will be former Raven Gus Edwards, or J.K. Dobbins, atop the depth chart. Vidal was just a Day Three pick out of Troy, not exactly a hotbed of NFL stars. But it will be interesting to see him on the field in the preseason.
Dobbins has dealt with some injuries and is coming off an Achilles injury. Edwards had some solid production in Baltimore but is a limited guy who always figured to share the backfield with someone. So let's look at Vidal.
He's undersized at 5-foot-8, but not small -- he weighed 213 at the combine. He ran a 4.46, so he's fast enough. And he was a workhorse the last two seasons, running for 1,132 and 1,661 yards, with 24 touchdowns. He also caught 44 passes for 341 more yards and another score. Neither Dobbins nor Edwards has done much in this regard, so those might be chances he gets (although Michigan didn't throw to its backs much under Harbaugh).
The production is nice, but as just a sixth-round pick, will he get the opportunity to produce? Contributors that late are few and far between, but they do happen.
In the last dozen years (since 2012), I count 51 running backs drafted in the sixth round. For our purposes, a better number is about 45, since a handful of these backs were fullbacks and drafted as such; nobody thought 257-pound Aaron Ripkowski was going to be a fantasy factor. Of those 45 pure running backs, a little over a quarter (12) had at least one top-50 fantasy season (PPR). Six had at least a top-30 season.
Best of these was a Fantasy Index favorite, Alfred Morris. But other notable ones include Latavius Murray, Spencer Ware and Rex Burkhead. Some good production along the way.
Table below shows all the sixth-rounders since 2012 with at least one top-50 season, and the numbers from their best year. Backs with multiple such seasons get black dots (backs with more than four have the number shown after their names).
| 6TH-ROUND RBS WITH TOP 50 SEASONS, 2012-2023 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | Att | Run | No | Rec | TD | Rk |
| 2012 | •••Alfred Morris, Was. | 335 | 1613 | 11 | 77 | 13 | 7 |
| 2015 | Latavius Murray, Oak. (8) | 266 | 1066 | 41 | 232 | 6 | 10 |
| 2016 | Spencer Ware, K.C. | 214 | 921 | 33 | 447 | 5 | 16 |
| 2015 | Theo Riddick, Det. (5) | 43 | 133 | 80 | 697 | 3 | 19 |
| 2013 | ••Andre Ellington, Ari. | 118 | 652 | 39 | 371 | 4 | 26 |
| 2021 | Elijah Mitchell, S.F. | 207 | 963 | 19 | 137 | 6 | 26 |
| 2017 | •••Rex Burkhead, N.E. | 64 | 264 | 30 | 254 | 8 | 39 |
| 2022 | ••Khalil Herbert, Chi. | 129 | 731 | 9 | 57 | 5 | 41 |
| 2014 | ••Alfred Blue, Hou. | 169 | 528 | 15 | 113 | 3 | 46 |
| 2021 | Ty Johnson, NYJ | 61 | 238 | 34 | 372 | 4 | 46 |
| 2015 | Alfred Blue, Hou. | 183 | 698 | 15 | 109 | 3 | 47 |
| 2019 | Boston Scott, Phil. | 61 | 245 | 24 | 204 | 5 | 49 |
I don't know if Vidal is particularly likely to join this group. Presumably if the Chargers really liked him they'd have selected him earlier.
But he was productive in college, and is big enough with enough athleticism to suggest it's possible. And I don't think he could have wound up on a better roster with a better coaching staff to make it seem possible. There are worse late-round selections.
--Andy Richardson