ShareThisGrading the running back class for next week's NFL Draft.
-- THE CREAM
MARK INGRAM, ALABAMA
This is not a great running back class, but Ingram is regarded as the best prospect by many.
Still, there are some red flags when it comes to the 2009 Heisman Trophy winner. Mike Lombardi of the NFL Network reported this month that two teams that need a running back have taken Ingram off their draft board because of concerns about his knee.
Ingram had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee before last season and missed the first two games. He rushed for 151 yards and two touchdowns on nine attempts in his return Sept. 18 against Duke and started all 11 games in which he appeared.
Ingram, 5-9 and 215 pounds, called his knee "a non-issue" at the NFL scouting combine in February after rushing for 875 yards on 158 carries (5.5 average) with 13 touchdowns and catching 21 passes for 282 yards and a touchdown as a junior.
His breakout season came as a sophomore when he rushed for 1,658 yards (6.1 average) with 17 touchdowns in leading Alabama to a national title. In addition to the Heisman, he also was selected as the Southeastern Conference Offensive Player of the Year.
-- THE CROP
-- 1. RYAN WILLIAMS, VIRGINIA TECH
After redshirting in 2008, Williams averaged 5.6 yards per carry and gained 1,655 yards with 21 touchdowns on the ground in 2009. He missed four games last season after suffering a slightly torn hamstring against East Carolina. The 5-9, 212-pound Williams rushed for 477 yards (4.3 average) with nine touchdowns in 10 games (five starts) as a sophomore. He can catch the ball, but like Ingram a lack of top-end speed is a drawback.
-- 2. KENDALL HUNTER, OKLAHOMA STATE
Hunter appeared in only eight games in 2009 after suffering a high ankle sprain early in the season, but he rebounded last year as a senior to start 13 games and rushed for 1,548 yards (5.7 average) and 16 touchdowns. He also caught 20 passes for 101 yards and averaged 17.4 yards on five kickoff returns. Hunter is only 5-7, 199 pounds, but he's strong and has the ability to avoid hits. Nonetheless, injuries are going to be a concern. He broke an ankle in high school and had to have screws placed in it to assist in his recovery.
-- 3. MIKEL LESHOURE, ILLINOIS
Leshoure is 5-11, 227 pounds and is built like a guy who will be able to carry a heavy workload in the NFL. He became a full-time starter last season as a junior and rushed for 1,697 yards (6.0 average), scoring 17 TDs on the ground and three more on receptions. Some question whether he will be able to find the holes at the next level, and some consider Kansas State's Daniel Thomas to be a better prospect. Thomas led the Big 12 in rushing for the past two seasons.
-- SLEEPER: DELONE CARTER, SYRACUSE
Projected by Pro Football Weekly as a mid-round pick, Carter is coming off a season in which he rushed for 1,233 yards (5.3 average) and nine touchdowns. Carter is 5-8, 222 pounds, and while he falls into the group of guys who don't have great speed, he does have the ability to break tackles and move the pile. He spent five seasons at Syracuse, receiving a medical redshirt in 2007 because of a dislocated hip.
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
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