Adrian Fedkiw
Can Ed McCaffrey’s son Christian make it looks as easy as his father did in the NFL for 13 seasons?
Christian McCaffrey certainly has the feet for a productive career.
Stay ready. #8days? pic.twitter.com/F4NL61DUPv
— Christian McCaffrey (@CMcCaffrey5) April 19, 2017
McCaffrey, who ran for 2,019 yards and eight touchdowns while catching 45 passes for 645 yards and five scores in 2015, followed that nearly Heisman Trophy-winning year with 1,603 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2016.
Let’s check out the tape and see how he got all of those yards …
STRENGTHS
McCaffrey is a creative back using his quick feet, vision and elusiveness in space and tight areas. He showcases balance with an effective spin move. McCaffrey is a patient runner a la Le’Veon Bell and does a great job of setting up his blocks.
If McCaffrey entered the NFL Draft as strictly a wide receiver, you can make the argument that he’d be the second best route runner behind Corey Davis. Check out the stop-and-go move in the first clip, insane separation, but the quarterback overthrew him.
To complete his versatile repertoire, McCaffrey can also return kicks and punts. In the first clip, the return was brought back due to a block in the back, but check out the moves!
WEAKNESSES
Although he played in a pro-style offense at Stanford, there are still questions about McCaffrey’s size at 202 pounds and whether he can handle a heavy workload in the NFL. He did it in college, but the next level is a different animal. McCaffrey does possess some underrated strength and drives his legs forward through contact. He was effective in short-yardage situations, evidenced by his 84.4 percent success rate. He was bottled up a lot at the line of scrimmage, however, when Stanford ran from under center and between the tackles, whether the Cardinal were in single back or I-formation.
CONCLUSION
McCaffrey’s versatility would fit the Eagles well because Doug Pederson loves running backs that can catch the ball out of the backfield. The concern, though, is his ability between the tackles because that’s ultimately what Pederson wants to do … play power football. He was able to cater his offense around his offensive line last year with some outside zone and runs outside the tackles.
When I see McCaffrey with the football in his hands, I see the elusiveness and quick feet of Warrick Dunn, who was smaller than McCaffrey. The most times Dunn carried the ball in a season was 286, but he did add the versatility of being a pass catcher as well. If you compare that to workhorse running back Adrian Peterson, the former Vikings back has toted the rock more than 300 times on four occasions, with his highest being 363. McCaffrey carried the ball 337 times during his sophomore season, but that number was reduced to 253 in 2016.
McCaffrey should be a solid pro at the next level, but I believe there’s better value for the Eagles at No. 14.
You can follow Adrian Fedkiw on Twitter (@AdrianFedkiw) and e-mail him at [email protected]. Subscribe to The Bitter Birds on YouTube here. Follow Philly Influencer on Twitter (@PHL_Influencer), Facebook and Instagram.