Tag: swift uga

Lions RB D’Andre Swift hurdles defender

Former Georgia football RB D’Andre Swift makes a highlight play, hurdling a Washington defender in Week 10 of the NFL.

Former Georgia running back D’Andre Swift just had an insane hurdle for the Detroit Lions.

Swift broke free for a 16-yard run as he hurdled a Washington Football Team defender in the first quarter this Sunday.

WATCH:

Swift has six carries for 44 yards with less than 2 minutes left until the second quarter.  Swift and the Lions currently lead Washington 7-3.

Detroit Lions RB D’Andre Swift signs his rookie contract

Former Georgia football RB D’Andre Swift has signed his rookie NFL contract with the Detroit Lions.

It’s official.  Former Georgia running back D’Andre Swift signed his rookie contract with the Detroit Lions this Thursday.

Swift gave Dawgs fans countless explosive plays and memories, finishing 7th all-time on the Georgia rushing list in just three seasons with 2,885 rushing yards.

The incoming NFL rookie has put pen to paper and will now begin the next chapter in his football career.

The details surrounding the contract are not yet released, but it is estimated he will be signing an $8.5 million deal, based on standard salary slotting for the No. 35 overall pick.

Former Georgia RB D’Andre Swift is a huge Barry Sanders fan

Barry Sanders shares his thoughts on the Detroit Lions selection of D’Andre Swift, who is apparently a huge fan.

D’Andre Swift is the future running back that the Detroit Lions have put their faith in, selecting him 35th overall in the 2nd round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

Barry Sanders left a rushing legacy in Detroit that hasn’t been touched since he retired.

According to ESPN Detroit Lions reporter Michael Rothstein, Swift revealed who his favorite running back ever is.

Rothstein mentioned Swift was born just weeks after Sanders’ last game in a Lions uniform.  Take that as you will, but I see a little bit of fate sprinkled into this pick.

Sanders is a big fan of Swifts too.

During the live Draft-a-Thon, Sanders shared his thoughts on Swift just moments after the Lion’s pick was announced.

“I’ve known that we had our eye on him (Swift), one of the best running backs in the draft,” Sanders said. “A guy that can get it done. He can get up and down the field.  He had a great career at Georgia.  One person that’s really celebrating is Matthew Stafford getting a solid piece at running back.  So that’s a very nice addition to the team.”

These are words coming from one of the best to ever do it at the running back position.  It will be fun to see Sanders and Swift link up in Detroit as the two both have admiration for each others game.  Hopefully Swift can carry the torch and be the next great running back in Detroits Lions history.

Lions RB D’Andre Swift tops fantasy football rookie rankings

Detroit Lions RB D’Andre Swift ranked as the top preseason 2020 rookie fantasy football player.

Former Georgia running back D’Andre Swift is expected to make a big NFL splash early in his pro career.

Swift, who was drafted in the early second round by the Detroit Lions, is already at the top of predictions for this upcoming season. Sporting News has Swift as the No. 1 2020 fantasy rookie available for next year that can help your team right away.

Detroit had injury problems at the running back position last year, meaning Swift could have a much bigger role than expected early on.  He will definitely be used catching short passes in the backfield a lot which will be great for PPR (point per reception) leagues.

Swift was listed ahead of three rookie running backs including the Colts Jonathan Taylor, Chiefs Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Ravens J.K. Dobbins.  He was also ranked ahead of Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, who went first overall to Cincinnati in the draft.

Sporting News on Swift:

“Swift likely will start in a committee with Kerryon Johnson and Bo Scarbrough, but Matt Patricia will end up trusting the Georgia running back and use him in a similar role as Bill Belichick does with Sony Michel. Swift might be inconsistent from week to week early in the season, but there’s a good chance he leads all rookies in rushing yards in 2020.”

Swift could be a solid steal for fantasy owners who will most definitely want to keep him on their radar.

How former UGA RB D’Andre Swift fits with the Detroit Lions

Read how we see former Georgia RB D’Andre Swift fitting in with his new team the Detroit Lions.

It’s official, Detroit fans.  D’Andre Swift is officially a Lion!

So how does Swift fit into this offense?

Swift received All-SEC honors in 2019, rushing for 1,218 yards and 7 touchdowns on 196 carries, and 24 catches for 216 yards and a touchdown.  Swift is small but compact.  His agility and ability to make such hard and swift cuts (no pun intended) will ultimately be what makes him excel at the next level.

He may be 5-8 but he weighs around 220lbs, and that muscle is mostly in his legs.  His cut backs and explosiveness are similar to those of New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley.

The Lions finished last season with a record of 3-12-1, after starting the season 2-0-1.  This is partially due to losing their star RB’s Kerryon Johnson, who only played in five games, and Bo Scarbrough, who played in just six.  Swift fits perfectly with the Detroit Lions because they need a quick-cutting, fast back to mix with their power of a hopefully healthy Johnson and Scarbrough.

Swift gets the opportunity to play with Lions QB and former Georgia legend Matthew Stafford, which will be a sight to see for Bulldog fans.

Watch Swift’s junior year highlights here (video via College Films):

Detroit Lions fans, get to know your new RB D’Andre Swift

The Detroit Lions have selected Georgia RB D’Andre Swift with the 35th pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Now Lions fans, meet your new RB.

Detroit fans, it’s official.  D’Andre Swift is officially a Lion!

Now, it’s time for you to meet your new running back.

Swift is from Philadelphia, PA where he attended St. Josephs Prep and was ranked as the #4 running back in the 2017 college recruiting class.

He committed to the University of Georgia in September of 2016 in dramatic fashion and still remains the most hype college commitment video of all time.

Watch Swift’s 2016 UGA commitment video here:

Swift didn’t choose the easy option. He had an arsenal of seriously talented running backs ahead of him at UGA, including now super bowl champion Sony Michel, and the highest returning PFF graded NFL running back Nick Chubb.

Swift didn’t back down from this challenge, but instead used these players ahead of him as mentors, learning everything he could while he was the #3 or #4 back.

Swift got 81 carries on his rookie season, helping the Dawgs to a Rose Bowl title and nearly a national championship.  He split carries with Elijah Holyfield in his sophomore season, tallying over 1,000 rushing yards in a breakout year.

Swift now is coming off his junior year at Georgia, putting up the 7th all-time most rushing yards (2,885) in school history in his three years there.

Watch the shiftiest RB in the draft’s highlights here (Video via JustBombsProductions):

The Detroit Lions select Georgia Bulldogs RB D’Andre Swift

The The Detroit Lions have drafted University of Georgia running back D’Andre Swift with the 35th pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

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And with the 35th pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, the The Detroit Lions select D’Andre Swift, running back from the University of Georgia.

It has been D’Andre Swift’s dream his entire life to hear his name called on NFL draft day, and that dream has finally come true.

Swift finished 7th all-time in rushing yards in school history during his three years playing for the Bulldogs.  He helped lead the Dawgs to a Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl and an SEC Championship.

An incredible pick by the Detroit Lions that will provide them with a franchise caliber running back and be an offensive catalyst, hopefully for years to come.

Swift was originally the favorite to be the first RB selected off the board, but in stunning fashion the Kansas City Chiefs selected LSU RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire with the final pick of the first round.

ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit had some great things to say about the Philadelphia native prior to draft day.

“I think he’s a three-down guy, which is what the NFL is always looking for,” Herbstreit said. “Can he run between the tackles? Can he catch the ball on the perimeter and make people miss? I think those of us who have followed his career know he can be that type of guy. He’s not necessarily a blazer, but he’s incredibly quick and can catch the ball. I think he’s the total package, and I’m interested in seeing where he goes and how he fits in as well.”

Congratulations to D’Andre on an amazing accomplishment that came from nothing but hard work and dedication!

We wish him the best of luck in Detroiu.

USA TODAY releases scouting report for Georgia football RB D’Andre Swift

Swift’s footwork and balance given his bulky build have NFL scouts intrigued.

Former Georgia tailback D’Andre Swift is one of ten Bulldogs invited to Indianapolis to perform skills assessments before a mass of professional football scouts.

USA TODAY’s DraftWire has provided a plethora of pre-NFL Draft analyses leading up to this month’s NFL Scouting Combine. The latest from Patrick Conn provides a favorable projection for invitee D’Andre Swift.

“Swift is likely the top rated running back on most draft boards and could be the first one selected in the NFL Draft. Based on how he plays the game, Swift has future New England Patriot written all over him (well, if they didn’t already have former teammate Sony Michel).”

The analysis points out how Swift’s speed is rare given his muscular build, shorter-than-average height, and the resultant low center of gravity.

Swift’s footwork and balance given his bulky build have NFL scouts intrigued. He’s a ball carrier who requires a full-effort tackle to down. He is also fully capable of jumping clean over defenders quite a bit larger than he.

No shoulder-to-shoulder. No shoestrings. No arm tackles.

In other words, D’Andre Swift is too jacked, too swole, too yolked to have any sort of right being as, uh, swift as he is. That’s because the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

However, the projector does bring up a possible criticism:

“As with any running back in the class, Swift will need to focus on his pass protecting technique at the NFL level…Durability is going to be a concern, not just on the injury front. At Georgia he never had more than 220 touches on offense, so a heavier workload will be a concern moving forward.”

The analyst conservatively assess Swift as a top 50 pick and compares his comprehensive run, catch, block capabilities to Christian McCaffrey.

What we learned from Georgia football’s win at Auburn

Defense again stole the show for Georgia on Saturday as the Dawgs picked up their SEC East-clinching win in a trip to Auburn.

Defense again stole the show for Georgia on Saturday as the Dawgs picked up their SEC East-clinching win in a trip to Auburn. The offense sputtered, but came through when needed. What did we learn?

Georgia’s defense is historically great, but has its flaws.

Oh no, Georgia gave up its first rushing touchdown of the season. It took ten games for any team to accomplish that against the Bulldogs.

What really hurt Georgia over the course of the game? Slant routes. Auburn simply abused Bulldog cornerbacks with quick 10 yard gains early on in drives, and while Georgia’s defense eventually stepped it up and forced several midfield punts and fourth down attempts, the Tigers’ offense out-gained and out-possessed Georgia’s offense on the day largely due to their quick chunk plays.

LSU still needs one more win to clinch the SEC West, but regardless of whether Georgia will meet Heisman hopeful Joe Burrow or an Alabama squad who recently lost its star quarterback, the Dawgs’ secondary will have to tighten things up in Atlanta when facing either one of two Western Division powerhouses that are ranked within the top ten nationally in total offense.

Switching to a soft zone defense late in the game when your defense has dominated all day may not be a good idea.

Georgia had all the momentum going into the fourth quarter. With a 21-0 lead, Georgia’s defense switched from their smothering man defense to a soft zone, presumably so as to not give up any home run plays.

However, Auburn then scored two touchdowns within the span of three minutes and found themselves driving to level the score in the game’s waning minutes.

All’s well that ends well, but switching to zone and nearly snatching defeat from the jaws of victory likely shaved some time off Georgia fans’ lifespans.

In a defensive battle, Jake Camarda can be the difference.

The Bulldogs’ punter has had a good season, not a great one. Yesterday on The Plains, however, Jake Camarda looked NFL-caliber. A certain special teams specialist even called him the game’s most valuable player.

He averaged just north of 50 yards per punt against the Tigers, including a booming 67 yarder that pinned Auburn at its own two yard line. In a matchup which your offense requires you to punt 11 times (including NINE three-and-outs), consistency is key in allowing your defense to control the pace of the game.

Georgia’s offense revolves around the offensive line.

Okay, maybe we knew this much earlier on. That being said, they looked stout against an Auburn front seven who came into the game averaging two and a half sacks per contest. Georgia allowed just one sack, which became only the sixth sack they’ve allowed all season.

Jake Fromm didn’t look as crisp as he’s looked in the past, but his pass protection provided by the Great Wall of Georgia allowed him all day to throw. Perfect blocking and a perfect throw gave Georgia a first quarter lead it would never relinquish.

Fromm would later toss two additional beautiful touch passes to Brian Herrien and Eli Wolf. D’Andre Swift recorded yet another 100 yard rushing performance. The offensive line continues to stand tall, literally and figuratively.

D’Andre Swift is not a human, he’s a tornado.

We’ve seen Swift with some mean tackle-avoiding spin moves before, but his latest is absurd. How quickly he managed to turn that full 360 degrees blows my mind, and with a hand in his face and a tackler closing in, he casually trotted for a first down.

Overall, what did we learn? Them Dawgs is hell.