Positional ranking: #1

Big Board ranking: #17

 

Overview

Position: RB

College: Alabama

Class: Junior

Age: 21

 

Measurables

Height: 5’10”

Weight: 220 lbs.

Arm length: 31 5/8”

Hand size: 10 1/8”

 

Athletic testing

40-yard dash: DNP (4.60 sec. at Pro Day)

Vertical jump: DNP

Broad jump: DNP

Bench press: DNP

3-cone drill: DNP

Short shuttle: DNP

 

Strengths

Powerful runner that seeks contact. Punishes would-be tacklers. Doesn’t particularly like going out of bounds. Tremendous balance. Great vision. Sees the hole and accelerates through it. Agile. Can side step a defender and get upfield. Possesses a nasty dead-leg cutback. Subtle moves make defenders miss. Knows when he can bounce runs to the outside. Understands angles and brushes off arm tackles in the open field. Converts in short-yardage situations. Has flashed big-play ability as a receiver. Soft hands. Comfortable catching passes over the middle. Excellent in pass protection. Had success as a kick returner.

 

Weaknesses

Doesn’t have home-run speed. Limited production and playing time at Alabama.

 

NFL comparison

Thurman Thomas – Being compared to Thomas—a Hall of Famer—is obviously very high praise, but there isn’t a player in recent memory that has Josh Jacobs’ punishing style combined with pass-catching skills and the ability to make people miss.

 

Conclusion

Overall, Josh Jacobs is an all-around running back that will run through a defender just as easily as he will make them miss in the open field. It is a slight concern that he wasn’t featured for the Crimson Tide, but Jacobs will have limited mileage and should be a tone-setter at the next level.