Giants draft preview: Running back options on each day of the draft

Giants still seem likely to add to Saquon Barkley-less position

The tides have changed for the New York Giants as they proceed without a bell-cow running back for the first time since Saquon Barkley’s arrival in 2018. Barkley is now in Philadelphia, and the Giants signed former Buffalo Bill and Houston Texan Devin Singletary to help restore Barkley’s production.

Singletary is an underrated running back with 4,049 career rushing yards. There’s little proven depth behind Singletary, but two young running backs – Eric Gray and Gary Brightwell – could have an opportunity of a lifetime this season. It depends on if the Giants want to add another running back.

New York won’t consider a running back on Day 1, but it’s not inconceivable that they’ll select one on day two. Also, I tend to hate NFL comparisons but understand the value, so I’ll give mine for each player. Please rip me apart in the comments and let me know your thoughts. Here are two-Day 2 running backs and three-Day 3 running backs for the Giants to consider.

Day 2

Trey Benson, Florida State

NFL comparison: Lamar Miller, Miami 2012

Benson became the first Florida State Seminole to record an 80-yard touchdown catch and rush. In doing so, he reached a peak speed of 21.9 MPH and reached 21 MPH several times through his senior season. He earned two consecutive spots on the Second-team All-ACC (2022 and 2023).

Strengths

• Good sized back with a chiseled physique
• Home run breakaway long speed – does possess a second gear
• Explosive lateral agility to cover ground on juke at the LOS
• Low runner who quickly changes direction
• Clocked over 21 MPH (Pitt Q3 1:21 55-yard TD)
• Quick accelerator – smooth mover when adjusting laterally on longer runs
• Very good speed to capture the edge and score up the sideline
• Florida Q3 12:41
• Miami Q3 5:57 38-yard TD
• Wake Forest Q2 4:31 80-yard screen TD
• Difficult to frame in space – sells intentions well by angling his body before quickly slashing in another direction:

— Louisville Q4 5:26 21-yard rush
— Miami Q1 10:49 7-yard rush (option run); Q3 5:57 38-yard TD
— Duke Q3 13:12 10-yard rush

• Sudden short-area-quickness to start/stop with twitch at the LOS
• Light feet when parsing through LOS
• Solid vision to see openings – adaptive rusher
• Forces LBs to scrape too far with movement – finds cut-back
• Dangerous with a two-way go when pressing the LOS
• Patient and explosive to win the cat-and-mouse game vs. LBs
• Good overall feel/vision to abandon front side of the play – locates cut-back
• Uses very good tempo/patience at the LOS when warranted to allow holes to develop
• Tempo on counter runs was fantastic – optimized time for his blockers
• An impressive combination of controlled lateral movement and peripheral vision:

— Florida Q4 2:56 26-yard TD
— LSU Q4 14:50 14-yard rush
— Wake Forest Q4 11:14 third-and-18, TD 18 yards

• Good play strength – will run right through arm tackles
• Dangerous stiff arm
• Impressive power and core strength vs. high tacklers – maintains low leverage and keeps his feet moving
• Strong lower body and balance when wrapped up high
• Will churn his feet and stay low through contact with back turned away from the upfield
• Gets low at the line of scrimmage – can run between the tackles at the GL:

— Florida Q2 00:32 TD
— Miami Q1 7:19 TD

• Not afraid of contact – runs with an old-school mentality
• Flashed very good contact balance/control through contact (Miami Q1 2:58 7-yard rush)
• Defenders better ensure he’s done upon tackling – he frequently popped up without having a knee or elbow touch the deck
• Natural receiver with adequate hands – can extend away from his frame
• Catches the football smoothly and gets upfield quickly
• Natural feel for sifting through traffic and setting up blocks as a screen receiver
• Functional pass protector – strong base and solid identification skills
• Ran WILDCAT near end of the season
• Plenty of experience rushing in Power/Gap/Counter & Zone

Weaknesses

• A bit tight-hipped as his speed increases
• Could be more elusive at the second/third level
• Flashed very good contact balance/control through contact but wasn’t consistently a top trait through tape
• Solid overall contact balance, though
• Flashed natural receiving skills other than vs. Syracuse, where he had three drops
• He was looking into the sun for two of them; neither were easy catches but should have been caught
• Only had 32 catches in his college career
• Had plays where he sifted through traffic well inside but had a propensity to bounce outside
• Needs to learn when the play is dead:

— Florida Q1 7:33 11-yard loss
— LSU Q4 13:41 2-yard loss

• He is a functional pass protector but could take better angles and position himself in a more advantageous manner
• Never had more than 20 carries in a game (had 20 vs. Florida in 2022)
• Devastating knee injury in 2020 at Oregon

Benson has had two productive seasons since his devasting knee injury in 2020. He’s a big back who thrived in a power/gap system with experience in zone. He has explosive long speed- clocking over 21 MPH several times in 2023 – with excellent acceleration in his second gear. He’s flashed excellent vision when sifting through traffic between the hashes but also had a propensity to bounce runs outside; consistency on the vision front can likely be improved, but some of the runs listed above required next-level nuance and feel. Overall, I’m not concerned with his vision, and it’s enhanced by his patience/timing, and ability to wait for blocks to develop.

Benson’s combination of size and speed is enticing. He’s not slippery in space, but he showed the ability to set defenders up and use his burst/speed to break their angles. He wasn’t used extensively as a receiver but looked solid when asked, and his ability to pass protect was functional. The Giants displayed interest in Benson. The Giants, specifically, have many needs on their roster that could be addressed in the second round. It remains unclear if Benson would be at pick 70. His capabilities suggest a Day 2 player, and he has starting upside, but the Giants, and their offseason moves, may suggest running back is more of a Day 3 option.

Jaylen Wright, Tennessee

NFL comparison: Jerome Ford, Cincinnati 2022

If the Giants want a home run hitter at running back, Wright could be their selection. He averaged 7.4 yards per carry in 2023 with more than 1,000 yards rushing. Of running backs who received at least 20% of their team’s carries, Wright ranked eighth in yards after contact with a 4.35 average. He also had 35 runs of more than 10 yards. He’s an explosive home run threat who can flip a game script in one carry.

Strengths

• Elite breakaway speed with very light feet
• Angle defeating speed to the sideline – home-run hitter
• Exceptional acceleration, change of direction, and agility
• Elite explosiveness to get to the second level
• Elusive and slippery with the football in his hands
• Quick cuts leave defenders a step behind
• Solid overall vision and feel for running behind blocks
• Good patience exercised when approaching the line of scrimmage
• Good footwork to press the line of scrimmage and react accordingly based on second level defender’s reactions
• Solid overall job anticipating second-level blocks in DUO/IZ
• Willing to finish with authority – solid in doing so
• Does a solid job identifying the threat in pass protection
• Will get in the threat’s way, albeit not perfectly
• Is not shy in pass protection and wants to be effective
• Limited usage as receiver, but capable with the role he was asked to play
• Experience running gap/zone out of shotgun (86 gap, 50 zone in 2023)

Weaknesses

• Looks much smaller than his listed weight of 210 pounds (pre-combine)
• Frame seems undersized
• Won’t be a pile mover
• Had some indecisive reps under his belt
• Vision is solid, but indecision did limit his upside on certain plays
• Doesn’t consistently fall through contact
• Only adequate play strength
• Adequate ability in pass protection
• Lunged at his target too frequently, susceptible to be beaten around the edge
• Limited receiving experience and route tree
• Most of his experience is running out of shotgun
• Suffered an undisclosed injury that held him out of the Senior Bowl

In today’s NFL, explosive plays are paramount on offense. Wright had 34 explosive runs, 43 missed tackles forced, and averaged over nine yards a carry in five games through the 2023 season. Wright is explosive with breakaway speed, light feet, and the mentality to run through opposing tacklers. He’s not going to be a pile mover in the NFL, and I wish he were used more as a receiver in college; I believe there’s more meat on the bone with his receiving ability, but Tennessee coach Josh Heupel’s offense didn’t feature the running back in their passing attack.

Wright can improve in pass protection, but his ability to identify and locate is sound – he just needs a bit more help with his overall technique of absorbing the contact and steering the defender away from the pocket. Wright is an excellent change of pace back who is very elusive. He has the upside to eventually be a 1a in a running back by committee but may need to start as a valuable second option with game-changing ability. The value of speed in an offense carries a lot of weight and Wright provides ample speed.

Day 3

Audric Estimé, Notre Dame

NFL comparison: Chris Carson, Oklahoma State 2016

Full disclosure: this is the player I want the Giants to pursue on Day 3 if he’s still available. I know, you’re probably thinking, “Why would the NFL select a 4.71 RB on Day 2?” They probably won’t, but it will not be shocking if they do because Estimé is very good at football. He’s the perfect compliment to Singletary – a battering ram on the inside who can succeed in creating tough yards with enough explosiveness and short-area quickness to make defenders miss in space.

I have a higher grade on Estimé than I do on Tennessee’s Jaylen Wright, who I included in the day two portion of this article.

After former Golden Domer Kyren Williams entered the NFL, Estimé’s involvement expanded; he finished his college career with 6.2 yards per carry and 106 total missed tackles forced. He averaged 4.27 yards after contact in 2023 with a solid mixture of gap/power and zone rushing concepts. Here are some of his strengths and weaknesses, followed by a synopsis of their play:

• Chiseled – YOKED UP – body frame with barrel chest and thick legs
• Good size/mobility in a phone booth combination
• Solid overall athlete with adequate change of direction skills and agility
• Solid overall quickness and explosiveness
• Build up speed and acceleration was good, albeit took awhile for his momentum to reach top speed
• Runs low behind his pads – excellent contact balance
• Runs through arm tackles and poor tackle attempts
• Impressive stiff arm – an old-school power type back
• Excellent play strength; falls through contact frequently
• Not an easy back to bring down in a one-on-one situation
• Very good vision, patience, and tempo when approaching the LOS
• Presses the LOS to set up blocks and remove defenders from cut back lanes
• A smart overall running back with good processing
• Excellent job following blocks in power/gap and counter situations
• Great feel for angling his body at the line of scrimmage to avoid contact
• Excellent feel for backside pursuit defenders – solid timing to avoid
• Wasn’t asked to receive often but was comfortable when tasked to do so
• Thrives in short yardage situations due to low leverage and physical running style
• Physical nature translated in pass protection
• Good eyes in protection shouldn’t be a liability at the next level
• Can play in any style of offense
• He’s only 20 years old

Weaknesses

• Showed breakaway speed, but questions about his consistent deep speed are fair; it takes awhile for his speed to build up, like a locomotive
• Sufficient NFL athlete for a RB, but his athleticism isn’t a difference-making trait for him
• Unfortunate lack of involvement as a receiver
• Only had 26 career receptions, although he seemed comfortable when the ball was thrown his way
• Very limited route tree and involvement
• Ran behind one of the better offenses in college football

I really appreciate Estimé’s running style, which is combined with good footwork and vision. He’s physical and powerful, with good control and contact balance. He’s the type of back who can run through arm tackles and consistently pick up hard-earned yardage — a fan-favorite type of back. Still, he lacks receiving experience, is just a solid overall athlete, and lacks the home run-hitting value many other backs possess.

Estimé may not be the most explosive back, but he’s a patient football runner who should thrive in short-yardage situations with the upside of being a very good change-of-pace backto start with the body type to receive double-digit carries in the NFL. Estimé is best suited for a downhill rushing attack that features counter and power/gap concepts, but he has the vision, patience, and feet to play in a zone system. He has the upside to be a starter, especially if he proves himself as a receiver at the next level.

Braelon Allen, Wisconsin

NFL comparison: Hassan Haskins, Michigan 2022

The 20-year-old back had two consecutive 1,200-plus rushing seasons at Wisconsin, with a total of 35 career rushing touchdowns. He started all three years at Wisconsin, with double-digit rushing touchdowns in every season of his college career, and rushed for a total of 3,494 yards. He also caught 49 passes for 275 yards with zero touchdowns.

Allen is a physical back who lacks pure speed; however, GPS tracking did clock Allen at 22.4 MPH in 2022 (75-yard rushing TD vs. Ohio State). Much of his game is predicated on a brute physical nature rather than pure speed, but he has nimble feet for a bigger back. 69.5% of his yards came after contact in 2023; if you need a yard to gain, Allen can earn it.

He doesn’t have the quickest acceleration, but the locomotive gets going once he strides out. Allen pairs good vision with solid short-area quickness behind the line of scrimmage to assist his tough running style. He’s a sound blocker with receiving upside, despite limited usage in two separate Wisconsin offenses.

Allen executes well with what he’s asked to do. He’s not the most exciting prospect in the class, but he’s tough as nails and a reliable rusher. He has dealt with nagging injuries throughout his career but typically plays through most of them. Coaching staffs and fan bases will appreciate his rushing style.

Tyrone Tracy Jr., Purdue

NFL comparison: Ty Montgomery, Stanford 2015

The upside of Tracy Jr. is very appealing. He’s slightly older at 24, and his first college season was in 2018. However, he spent his first five seasons in college as a wide receiver. He started his college career at Iowa, where he was a team captain in 2021. After that season, he transferred to Purdue and played WR before – in his final year of eligibility – he changed his position to RB, which yielded immediate success.

Tracy Jr. averaged 6.3 yards per carry in 2023 on 113 carries for 716 yards and 19 catches for 132 yards. In his career, he had 10 rushing touchdowns, two of which came as a receiver. He finished his college career with 113 catches for 1,201 yards and five receiving touchdowns. His overall versatility and experience as a wide receiver will give any NFL offense the flexibility to split him out, and vary defensive assignments, which could especially be leveraged with other versatile offensive pieces (Wan’Dale Robinson).

Tracy Jr.’s burst, acceleration, and open-space vision are all impressive traits that he showed in just one season behind the line of scrimmage. Still, he has to improve his behind-the-line vision and be more patient at the line of scrimmage; he could also understand when to take what is there.

21.9% of Tracy Jr.’s carries last season went for 10 yards or more, which ranked in the top five of the FBS. He is well-built, absorbs contact well, and has solid overall speed with good explosiveness. He is different from other backs in this class and is more inexperienced, but he could have value as a kick returner, especially after the offseason rule changes.