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The Alabama Crimson Tide have not one, but two talented running backs and each of them has the potential to be a strong prospect in the 2019 NFL Draft. Along with Damien Harris, who’s received the bulk of the work over the past three seasons, fellow backfield mate Josh Jacobs has created some impressive NFL hype of his own.
Jacobs has proven capable of doing a bit of everything over his three seasons with the Crimson Tide, even though he’s received under 100 carries in each. Alabama’s appearance in the College Football Playoff should help Jacobs top the 100-carry mark for the first time in his career, as he sits at 94 through 13 games.
The 5-foot-10 running back totaled 225 carries for 1,346 yards (6.0 yards per carry) and 16 rushing touchdowns through his first 38 games. Jacobs has also caught 43 passes for 495 yards and four additional receiving scores.
Let’s take a look at what the draft analysts have to say about Jacobs as an NFL prospect, as well as his current stock and the projected round he could be picked.
Josh Jacobs’ NFL Draft Stock
While Walter Football has Jacobs’ teammate Harris listed as the top running back prospect in the 2019 NFL Draft, he doesn’t find himself far behind. Jacobs is currently graded out as the No. 2 back in the class and the site echoed what many draft analysts have said. There’s a bit of a belief that the junior could be even better than Harris at the NFL level.
“I know some scouts who rave about Jacobs and think he could have the best skill set of any of the running backs on Alabama’s roster. That is really saying something, and a lot of that is from watching the Crimson Tide in practice.” Walter Football wrote.
Back in late November, Luke Easterling of USA TODAY’s Draft Wire stated that he believes there’s a chance Jacobs could wind up being the first running back selected. Easterling commented that the skill set of Alabama’s running back could have NFL teams envisioning him as the next version of New Orleans Saints’ Alvin Kamara.
When Josh Jacobs Could Be Drafted if He Enters
Obviously, Jacobs being the first back off the board would be eye-opening, but a lot of it will come down to the NFL Scouting Combine. He’ll have the opportunity to showcase a wide range of his skill set and really boost his stock even more. But while Walter Football has Jacobs’ stock rising and him pegged as a prospect to be selected in the first two rounds, it seems there’s still a chance Alabama’s running back could choose to return to school.
As Michael Casagrande of AL.com revealed, Jacobs pushed back a bit on the idea of entering the draft after sending a tweet stating that he just wants his family “to have a better life” than he did. In turn, this is what led to the speculation, which Jacobs did his best to cool off shortly after.
“It’s crazy how people like to spin things, for real,” Jacobs said. “I honestly ain’t really thought about it, and the little bit of time that I did think about it, it kind of stressed me out so I just left it alone.”
While the idea of Jacobs as a first-round pick isn’t out of the question, it does seem that an early day two outcome is the more realistic expectation.
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