The Bengals were on-hand at University of Texas on Wednesday where running back D’Onta Foreman put his talents on display in front of all 32 NFL teams.
RB coaches from DET, CIN, PIT at @TexasFootball pro day to see D'Onta Foreman. How he's built reminds me of Jerome Bettis coming out of ND. https://t.co/Cb6iXFp4h6
— Gil Brandt (@Gil_Brandt) March 28, 2017
Bengals running backs coach Kyle Caskey was there to scout Foreman, who led the FBS with 184.4 rushing yards per game in 2016. At his pro day, Foreman ran the 40-yard dash in the mid-4.4 second range, recorded a 33” vertical jump and a 10-foot broad jump. He’s expected to be a Day 2 draft pick, and potentially taken within the first 100 picks.
Foreman and his twin brother Armanti attended Texas together and while Armanti, a wide receiver, was expected to be the better player, it was D’Onta who emerged as the star for the Longhorns in 2016. D’Onta recorded 2,028 rushing yards on 323 attempt (6.3 yards per attempt) and 15 touchdowns in his junior season before declaring for the draft. His 2015 season was pretty impressive too as he had 68 rushing yards on 95 attempts, good for 7.2 yards per carry. He also had 5 rushing touchdowns that year.
He does have some fumbling concerns (six lost in 2016) but it's hopeful that NFL coaching can improve that. He received consensus All-American honors and the Doak Walker Award for the nation's best running back in his final season at UT. Lance Zierlein compared him to Jonathan Stewart in his draft profile. Here’s a part of that scouting report:
Former three-star recruit who turned that a chip on his shoulder into a 2,000-yard junior season. Foreman has outstanding foot quickness and wiggle for a back his size, but will need to run behind his pads and with more aggression on the next level. Teams could be split on his draft value as some may covet his size and athleticism while others will be concerned about a lack of third down value. Ultimately he has the talent to be a good NFL starter, but he's still a work in progress.
As a bigger back (he weighed in at 234 pounds at the pro day), he could be a good option to replace Jeremy Hill long-term in Cincinnati. He struggles in pass protection, which is likely an area in which he'll need to improve before he's put into an NFL game. He'll also need to work on his ball security after the issues he faced there in his junior year.
CBS Sports ranks Foreman as the draft's 10th best running back and a Round 4 pick. No other Texas player has a draftable grade this year, but Foreman will certainly be a player to watch. Would you be interested in seeing the Bengals select Foreman in this year’s NFL Draft?