There were six running backs selected in the first three rounds of the NFL Draft, and six more in the fourth. Many of them, including Denver second-rounder RJ Harvey (pictured) were on the small side.
The Central Florida back wasn't typically mentioned as a Day 2 pick, which was perfectly fine with the Broncos. Sean Payton said the team was worried when it saw him on a list of rising players shortly before the draft began. "It was like, 'Ugh,'" Payton said Friday after Denver selected Harvey in the second round. "You don't want to read that."
Harvey ran for 2,993 yards and 38 touchdowns the last two years. In the linked story, Payton praised his vision, instincts and explosiveness. We've talked a lot here about Payton's use of running backs in the passing game, and Harvey's numbers don't stand out in that area (39 catches in 25 games the last two years). But Payton said, "Some offenses in college don't necessarily feature the halfback a lot in the passing game. ...He's got soft hands. He does a lot of those things well. You get to see that maybe more in the pro day than you do on the film, just because of the offense."
Harvey measured just 5-foot-8 and 205 pounds at the combine, which maybe gives some teams (and fantasy coaches) pause. And Denver, of course, signed J.K. Dobbins not long after Payton gave these quotes to the media, throwing a wrench into Harvey's rookie outlook. But looking at some sizes, there were more top contributors at smaller sizes a year ago than you might expect.
Of the top 15 backs in PPR leagues last year, six of them measured either 5-8 or 5-9 at the combine. Five of them weighed under 200 pounds, including four of the top 8 last season. Not to take anything away from Saquon Barkley or Derrick Henry, but there are some pretty great smaller fries in the league right now.
Table shows last year's top-15 running backs in PPR leagues. Those guys with less than ideal measurements are in bold.
| TOP 15 RUNNING BACKS (PPR), 2024 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Run | No | Rec | TD | Ht | Wt | Rk |
| Jahmyr Gibbs, Det. | 1412 | 52 | 517 | 20 | 5-9 | 199 | 1 |
| Saquon Barkley, Phil. | 2005 | 33 | 278 | 15 | 6-0 | 233 | 2 |
| Bijan Robinson, Atl. | 1456 | 61 | 431 | 15 | 5-11 | 215 | 3 |
| Derrick Henry, Balt. | 1921 | 19 | 193 | 18 | 6-2 | 247 | 4 |
| DeVon Achane, Mia. | 907 | 78 | 592 | 12 | 5-9 | 188 | 5 |
| Josh Jacobs, G.B. | 1329 | 36 | 342 | 16 | 5-10 | 220 | 6 |
| Kyren Williams, LAR | 1299 | 34 | 182 | 16 | 5-8 | 194 | 7 |
| James Cook, Buff. | 1009 | 32 | 258 | 18 | 5-11 | 199 | 8 |
| Alvin Kamara, N.O. | 950 | 68 | 543 | 8 | 5-10 | 214 | 9 |
| Chase Brown, Cin. | 990 | 54 | 360 | 11 | 5-9 | 209 | 10 |
| James Conner, Ari. | 1094 | 47 | 414 | 9 | 6-1 | 233 | 11 |
| Aaron Jones, Min. | 1138 | 51 | 408 | 7 | 5-9 | 208 | 12 |
| Chuba Hubbard, Car. | 1195 | 43 | 171 | 11 | 6-0 | 210 | 13 |
| Jonathan Taylor, Ind. | 1431 | 18 | 136 | 12 | 5-10 | 226 | 14 |
| Bucky Irving, T.B. | 1122 | 47 | 392 | 8 | 5-9 | 192 | 15 |
While everyone was connecting Omarion Hampton and TreVeyon Henderson to the Broncos, they were sitting there hoping no one would learn of their fondness for Harvey.
Ultimately, size still gets running backs selected earlier. Four of the six taken in the first three rounds weighed at least 209 pounds at the combine. Harvey and Ashton Jeanty (5-9, 211) are the only ones under 5-foot-10. (Others: Hampton, Henderson, Quinshon Judkins and Kaleb Johnson, three of whom are at least 6 feet and 220 pounds.)
But looking at the six selected in the fourth round, four measured just 5-foot-9 or less: Jacksonville's Bhayshul Tuten, Carolina's Trevor Etienne, the Rams' Jarquez Hunter and Cleveland's Dylan Sampson. Maybe 5-10 and above gets you selected, but a couple of these fourth-rounders (I'm intrigued by Tuten) will probably wind up starting some games this year.
With so many strong performers and league-winners at smaller sizes last year, I don't think people should shy away from backs like Harvey. The next Gibbs or Irving, perhaps.
--Andy Richardson