Fourth round: A.J. Dillon, Boston College
Dillon is one of the three RBs in the draft class who meet all the athletic testing thresholds that Quinn has looked for, as detailed in the Quinn-Influenced Benchmarks (QIB) compiled by Lions Wire’s Erik Schlitt.
At Boston College, Dillon proved he can slam through a crease effectively. He’s very difficult to tackle with his blend of power, lower-body strength and impressive forward lean. Once he gets rolling forward, he stays north-south very effectively. His second-level speed and balance through contact are major assets.
Dillon doesn’t have much in the way of lateral wiggle and he’s not an asset in the passing game. A high workload (almost 850 carries in 3 years) and his physical style lead to long-term durability concerns, but in the fourth round it’s a perfectly acceptable risk for the Lions.
Fifth round: Darrynton Evans, Appalachian State
I recently profiled Evans and his strengths and weaknesses. He’s a personal favorite and this is the range where I prefer the Lions address the RB position. His ability to handle the full range of duties like Kerryon Johnson currently does for the Lions makes him a very good value and fit. Like Dillon, Evans is one of the three QIB-qualifying backs in this class.