Saquon Barkley was selected second overall in the 2018 NFL draft. Barkley has struggled with some injury issues in the NFL but he entered the league as one of the most exciting running back prospects in recent memory.
Despite all the hype regarding Saquon Barkley many football fans do not know his 40 time.
Saquon Barkley ran an official 4.4 forty yard dash at the 2018 NFL combine. This speed paired with Barkley’s talent made him an easy selection as the number one running back in the draft.
At the time of the combine, Barkley weighed 232 pounds and was six feet tall, making a 4.4 40-yard dash quite impressive for his size.
Pre Draft Strengths And Weaknesses
Just like any other NFL prospect, Saquon Barkley had his strengths and weaknesses when entering into the league. Now that he has played a few seasons it’s time to check out these pre-draft opinions and see how accurate they were.
Offensive lineman’s best friend with talent to dismiss penetration with deft footwork
One of the positives regarding Barkley coming out of the draft was his ability to avoid penetration in the offensive line. In college, Barkley did not have the best offensive line and was often forced to avoid defenders in the backfield.
Unfortunately for Barkley, the offensive line woes continued for him in the NFL as the Giants regularly trotted out a lacklustre group in front of Barkley.
Though he was often able to avoid these players using his footwork he was often brought down by another defender by the time he avoided the first one.
Lateral burst and agility are top-notch
Saquon’s ability to get towards the sideline or change direction quickly was another reason that this running back was drafted so highly.
At the NFL level, Barkley was able to show that his burst and agility were the reel deal. Almost every game Saquon Barkley will find a way to get out of what seems like an impossible situation.
Barkley possesses a level of athleticism and speed that ensures he will produce at some level even if the blockers in front of him are playing poorly.
Effective separator in his routes
Another added bonus about Barkley as a prospect was that this player is an effective receiver. Oftentimes runningbacks will get matched up against linebackers when running receiving routes.
This presents an easy mismatch for Barkley who was often able to use his speed to generate separation from the linebacker covering him.
This allows Barkley to contribute to the offense even if the offensive line is getting dominated.
Will need to develop a more north/south mindset as a pro
One negative aspect of Saquon Barkley as a prospect is that he needs to become a north-south runner.
Throughout college Barkley was a home run hitter type of running back. This meant he often broke off long runs but this goal of getting long runs off often meant he tried to do too much in the backfield.
Barkley still struggled with this in the NFL but it is tough to say if it is a weakness. For some running backs a few negative runs followed by a long run is simply how they operate.
This is not always ideal for the team but forcing Barkley to run only North-South may cause his production to dip as opposed to rise.
Gets too cute with stutter-steps and jukes on first level allowing help to flow to the ball
Another knock against Barkley was that he attempted to juke out too many players near the line of scrimmage. Instead of trying to pick up a few yards Barkley often attempts to juke out defenders that have gotten through the offensive line.
Though these jukes often work on the defender they slow Barkley down so much that other defenders are able to catch up.
The Giant’s offensive line has been so poor that it is hard to tell if this is an issue for Barkley or if there are simply too many defenders being allowed into the backfield when Barkley runs.
If you enjoyed this article check out some other guides to NFL players speed such as Tyreek Hill’s 40 time or Darren Wallers.
