In this article I will be giving my evaluations of Kareem Hunt & Nelson Agholor. Hunt looks to continue the success from his rookie season where he had one of the best debuts in league history for a rookie and finished as the NFL’s leading rusher. Agholor went from being one of the most ridiculed and disappointing players on the Eagles to becoming their most explosive playmaker and one of the top slot receivers in the league.
I evaluate Running Backs on 10 traits, each weighted differently based on importance. Traits are listed as follows (not in order of importance):
Mental Processing: Pre-snap recognition, key & diagnose, football intelligence.
Pad Level: Run low to the ground with knee bend, get skinny through the hole, fall forward when finishing runs.
Vision: Post-snap path, set up blocks, find a lane, improvise and create when blocking breaks down.
Burst: Explosion through hole, accelerate to top speed.
Force Missed Tackles: Agility/Elusiveness to avoid defenders, power/strength to break tackles, contact balance to remain on feet.
Speed: Ability to run away from defenders.
Ball Security: Maintain ball possession.
Receiving: Route running to get separation, catch & gather.
Pass Blocking: Hold ground vs pass rusher, give QB time in pocket.
Competitive Intangibles: Leadership, fortitude, endurance, consistency, toughness, durability.
I evaluate Wide Receivers on 10 traits, each weighted differently based on importance. Traits are listed as follows (not in order of importance):
Mental Processing: Pre-snap recognition, key & diagnose, football intelligence.
Release: Fight through or avoiding press coverage, getting into route stem.
Separation Quickness: Create space at the top of route.
Speed: Ability to run away from defenders.
Body Control: Adjust to the ball placement of throw, keep feet in bounds.
Ball Skills: Tracking the ball in the air, hands to bring in the catch.
Yards After Catch: Force missed tackles, get upfield for yards.
Ball Security: Maintain ball possession.
Run Blocking: Create lane or space for runner.
Competitive Intangibles: Leadership, fortitude, endurance, consistency, toughness, durability.
Grading scale terms (from best to worst):
Rare
Elite
Great
Good
Solid
Adequate
Marginal
Poor
Name: Kareem Hunt
Team: Kansas City Chiefs
Number: 27
Height: 5’10”
Weight: 216 lbs
Age: 22
Statistics:
2017 Regular Season: 16 Games, 272 Rushes, 1327 Rushing Yards, 53 Receptions, 455 Receiving Yards, 11 Total Touchdowns, 1 Fumble.
Injuries:
None
Context:
2nd year RB. Drafted in 2017 in the 3rd round by the Kansas City Chiefs and played under Head Coach Andy Reid. Awarded the role of featured back for the team after the loss of Spencer Ware for the season due to injury occurring in the preseason. Shared 3rd down snaps with Charcandrick West.
Performance: Elite Mental Processing: Excels in both Gap & Zone schemes. Displays knowledge of pre-snap keys and blocking assignments of blockers in front of him. Possesses elite instincts and anticipation of running lanes that are developing. Situational awareness is high, always mindful of down & distance. Finds ways to get open as a receiver if a play breaks down. Identifies blitzers quickly, whether up the middle or off the edge.
Elite Pad Level: Runs with a very low center of gravity and forward lean. Bends his knees and sinks his hips. Has the hip flexibility and dexterity to get skinny through the hole when getting upfield, avoiding contact with his own linemen. Gets his shoulders very low on contact and falls forward to finish his runs.
Elite Vision: Good pace and angles on his path. In Gap runs, waits for pulling linemen to get into their blocks first before attacking the appropriate gap. Very comfortable on counters and toss plays. In Zone runs, very efficient in seeing how the blocks develop before deciding to bend, bang, or bounce. Shows good initial pacing but is decisive by the time he hits his 3rd step. Impressive anticipation from Mental Processing and will make cuts upfield to attack running lanes even before they’re fully there. Sees and avoids penetration with outstanding footwork and is able to sift through garbage smoothly. Capable of stringing multiple moves together and knows which angles to take in order to create for himself when blocking breaks down. However, widescreen/lateral vision lowers on Gap runs. Needs to be more consistent at pressing the line of scrimmage first to manipulate linebackers before making a cut into an open running lane. Flashes tendency to miss cutback lane.
Great Burst: Hits a 2nd gear when getting to the edge/perimeter, outrunning penetrating defensive linemen and linebackers. However, can be a little inconsistent when attacking inside running lanes.
Elite/Rare ability to Force Missed Tackles: Extraordinary contact balance. Has a very strong lower body with a thick, compact frame which allows him to wiggle through defenders’ attempted tackles at a high rate. Has the strength to power through and run over defensive backs. Very quick and agile, especially in tight spaces. Runs with light feet, enabling him to get in and out of his cuts quickly. Can stop on a dime and string together multiple moves to avoid defenders in space. Opens hips to change direction efficiently.
Good Speed: Separates from defensive linemen and linebackers at the 1st and 2nd levels. However, does get caught from behind by defensive backs.
Elite/Rare Ball Security: Holds ball tight to chest in open space and with both arms when running through traffic. Will switch ball to outside arm when running on the perimeter.
Good Receiver: Ran a lot of routes out of the backfield. Very comfortable running short routes and wheel routes out of the backfield. Finds open areas of the field as the checkdown option and is quick to turn eyes toward QB. Doesn’t drop passes often. However, hasn’t shown the ability to consistently snatch the ball out of the air and catch away from his body. Could improve ability to separate when facing man-to-man coverage.
Solid Pass Blocker: Good knowledge of keys and assignments, picking up appropriate blitzers in the few times he was asked to. Gets low to use leverage against pass rushers. However, tends to stop moving feet when engaging, allowing rushers to easily get around him. Needs better hand placement to better disrupt rushers and prevent potential holding penalties.
Good/Great Competitive Intangibles: Stepped up to be the featured RB after Spencer Ware’s injury. Displayed mental toughness and fortitude after losing a fumble on his first NFL carry by bouncing back with a great game. Durable, didn’t miss a single game in 2017. However, started to struggle with consistency during the middle of the season. Loses effectiveness with fewer touches due to inability to get into a rhythm.
Projection:
Overall, Kareem Hunt is a starting running back you can win because of. He has the physical capabilities to be the lead or featured back for a team whether they use a Gap-heavy scheme, Zone-heavy scheme, or combination of both. Also has the versatility and pass protection skills to be a key contributor in the passing game. Posseses an all-around type of skillset with very little weakness and can beat defenses in numerous ways. Hunt is one of the true elite running backs in the NFL and should be for years to come.
Name: Nelson Agholor
Team: Philadelphia Eagles
Number: 13
Height: 6’0”
Weight: 198 lbs
Age: 25
Statistics:
2017 Regular Season: 16 Games, 62 Receptions, 768 Receiving yards, 1 Rush, 7 Rushing Yards, 8 Total Touchdowns, 3 Dropped Passes, 0 Fumbles.
2017 Playoffs: 3 Games, 15 Receptions, 167 Receiving Yards, 4 Rushes, 29 Rushing Yards, 0 Total Touchdowns, 0 Fumbles.
Injuries:
2015: High ankle sprain, Week 5, missed next 3 games.
Context:
4th year WR. Drafted in 2015 in the 1st round by the Philadelphia Eagles. Replaced Jeremy Maclin as one of the team’s starting outside receivers under Head Coach Chip Kelly in 2015, and remained there again under Head Coach Doug Pederson in 2016. Moved to the slot receiver role before the start of the 2017 season after the departure of Jordan Matthews.
Performance:
Great/Elite Mental Processing: Highly intelligent route runner. Excels against off and zone coverage. Knows how to use different leverages to get open. Uses his body to shields his target window from the defender. Adjusts to the quarterback very well to provide an easy and available target. Finds open areas deep when plays break down. Has good spatial awareness near the boundaries and back of the end zone. Always aware of down and distance, consistently getting routes past the sticks.
Good Release: A very clean and efficient route runner. Runs full speed at the stem of his route and keeps his head up. Utilizes good angles and never takes wasted or unnecessary steps. Possesses quick feet to sidestep press coverage and good balance to stay on path. However, has a tendency to be late off the snap. Has a habit of sinking his hips first to get off the line of scrimmage, costing him valuable time to get into his route. Struggles against strong cornerbacks and needs to use his hands better to counter their physicality.
Great Separation Quickness: Doesn’t lose speed at the top of his route and is consistent out of his breaks. Excellent stop & turn ability on curl and comeback routes. Very effective on posts and corner routes due to built-up speed and hip flexibility to change directions smoothly. However, needs to improve on getting separation 1v1 in man coverage. Could use more head fakes and jab steps to freeze the cornerback. Needs to be a lot sharper on out routes.
Good/Great Speed: Builds up great speed, especially when running go or seam routes. Capable as a deep threat. However, lacks elite top end speed and struggles to stack against defensive backs 1v1.
Great Body Control: Has the dexterity to adjust to different ball placements. Fully extends outside of frame. Flashes ability to toe-tap and keep feet in bounds in tight spaces.
Great Ball Skills: Snatches ball away from body with very soft and natural hands. Capable of making highlight reel receptions with one hand or fingertips. Aggressively attacks the ball at its high point in jump ball situations. However, does show a tendency to double clutch when catching in stride and trying to turn up field too early.
Good/Great Yards After Catch ability: Very agile and creative in space. Opens up hips and has the contact balance to wiggle through arm tackles. Uses a sneaky stiff arm that catches defenders off guard. Possesses skills as a runner to be used on jet sweeps and occasional run plays. Uses good angles in space and has good vision to set up blocks. However, does get brought down rather easily by low wrap-up tackles to his lower body. Lacks the strength to break the tackles more frequently.
Great Ball Security: Tucks ball high to chest. Does a very good job at securing the ball with his body after the catch to prevent defenders from batting it loose.
Good Run Blocker: Aggressive. Uses hands to attack defender’s chest. Gets into good position to seal off running lane for runner. However, lacks the strength to move defender from platform.
Elite Competitive Intangibles: Extremely hard worker. Gives full effort on every snap and possesses a high motor. Never quits. After an abysmal first 2 seasons of his career, bounced back with a breakout season in 2017. Whenever he had a dropped pass, followed it up on the very next play with a reception. Has stayed healthy the past 2 seasons and hasn’t missed a game.
Projection:
Overall, Nelson Agholor is starting wide receiver you can win with. He excels at a high level as a slot receiver where he can get a clean release and attack the soft areas of in a zone defense, but still shows enough effectiveness on the outside as the X or Z receiver. He’s a dangerous weapon that can be used in all areas of the field. He possesses good overall athleticism but even better football intelligence and competitive intangibles. His limitations are his lack of any elite physical traits and how he struggles against physical corners. Agholor showed immense improvement in his 3rd year, and with his level of work ethic he will likely continue to improve at a high rate. He can be one of the top slot receivers in the league for a long time.
