Touchdown Wire’s top sleepers in the 2020 NFL Draft

You know the names at the top. Joe Burrow. Tua Tagovailoa. But the NFL Draft has seven rounds. Who are the top sleepers for the 2020 Draft?

Rico Dowdle, RB, South Carolina

(Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports)

In the major media space, there are names that one can turn to when it comes to studying specific positions. In terms of evaluating offensive skill players, one of the keenest minds is that of Matt Waldman. Waldman has been studying the game for years and his Rookie Scouting Portfolio, which always goes north of 1,000 pages, is one of the premier pre-draft publications. This year’s version covers 1,194 pages, and when Waldman speaks highly of a player, I take notice. NFL teams do too.

In this year’s version of the RSP, one of the players that Waldman highlights at the running back position is Rico Dowdle, an often-injured running back from South Carolina. As a freshman, Dowdle rushed for 764 yards and six touchdowns, averaging almost 5.7 yards per carry and as Waldman termed it, he spent that season “playing peak-a-boo with defenders between the tackles with a style reminiscent of Joe Mixon and Le’Veon Bell.”

Unfortunately, Dowdle never replicated that production, let alone built on it. He battled injuries throughout his college career. His freshman campaign might have seen more production, had he not missed the first four games of the season recovering from sports hernia surgery. In 2017 he looked to be building off that strong finish to his freshman season when he scored a pair of touchdown in South Carolina’s season-opening win over NC State, but he broke his leg and missed the final five regular season games.

In 2018, Dowdle suffered a hamstring injury early in the season and was relegated to sharing the load with Mon Denson and Ty’Son Williams. Even in a rotational spot, Dowdle managed over five yards per carry.

Last season, the job seemed to be his alone. Williams transferred to BYU, and Dowdle earned the starting spot in preseason despite suffering an ankle sprain. After getting off to a solid start, his season was hampered by a knee sprain that limited his effectiveness this past season.

But when he is healthy, he can be a force as a runner and out of the backfield in the passing game. This touchdown run from his freshman season highlights his vision and change-of-direction ability:

First is the vision, as Dowdle identifies the cutback opportunity to his right. But then he implements a jump-stop move, flashing that change-of-direction skill. In the open field, Dowdle as great feel for the external threat, as he implements a spin move to avoid the would-be tackler and take this play the distance.

This cutup from The Ringer’s Danny Kelly also displays some of his skills, including his balance, his ability to finish runs falling forward, and what he offers after the catch out of the backfield:

As noted by Kelly, while Dowdle did not do all of the drills at the Combine, his vertical of 38 inches and his 10 foot 7 inch broad jump are both elite for running backs, according to Kent Lee Platte’s Relative Athletic Score system.

Putting this all together, it is clear there is promise and potential. As Waldman writes, “[Dowdle’s] also a professional-caliber athlete on the field.” Waldman expands on that, stating that “[if NFL scouts] decide there’s reason to limit the weight of [South Carolina’s] perspective and an NFL organization selects Dowdle late on Day Three, it could be an indication that they believe Dowdle has potential value worth a firmer investment. The film says so regardless of the limited production.”

In a year and in a climate where the teams are going to rely on the film more than ever, Dowdle might be worth that firmer investment.

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