NFL Draft Preview: Marshawn Lynch

Marshawn showing off his skills driving an injury cart. He totally should have taken some players down with the red turtle shells.

Today let's take a look at the second best running back in the draft, and probably the only other one who'll go in the first round in what looks to be a weak class. He played for Jeff Tedford, but since he's not a QB that doesn't mean he'll automatically be a bust (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith...you know). At least that's what one team is hoping...

Name: Marshawn Lynch

Position: Running Back

School: Cal

Pros: Can drive circles around your ass with the injury cart with skills that were honed by years of Maro Kart playing. Very soft hands, possibly uses moisturizer to help with that. Physical back who doesn't seem to get injured much, which should help since you can't gain yards sitting on the bench.

Cons: Could be TOO physical in that he's not really that elusive and tends to get hit a bit too much. This wasn't a problem in NCAA 07 when he would just steam roll digital linebackers, but I don't know if this method will work in real life.

Completely Unbiased Synopsis: Marshawn could actually be a more complete back than Adrian Peterson. He played in an offensive where catching the ball out of the backfield was important, and has shown the ability to do that very well, which Peterson has not. He's also a big, strong, fast back who has the ability to hit the hole with speed and power. Problem is he doesn't have much of a juke and therefore takes a lot of hits. He didn't get injured much in college, but he also split time for most of his career. That isn't a big knock against him as running backs like Ronnie Brown, and to a lesser extent Cadillac Williams have shown the ability to be a number one back in the NFL after splitting time in college. Add that to the fact that most teams employ a few backs, and Marshawn should do just fine. I will say that he's not the best pass blocker, so he'll probably need to improve that a bit or he'll find himself sitting on the bench on passing third downs.

Where He's Headed: There are two places I see Marshawn landing. One is Buffalo at 12, since they are probably in the market for a new back after sending Willis McGahee to Baltimore. The other is Green Bay at 16 who needs to replace Ahman Green after he decided to go to Houston. I think the Packers will move up ahead of the Bills to snag Lynch and give him a front row seat to Brett Favre’s never ending retirement tour. Seriously can't this guy just retire? I'm ready to start the Aaron Rodgers Era! (Remember folks, I'm a Lions fan)

BOLD PREDICTION: Marshawn will prove to be a good NFL back. He'll put together a few 1,000 yard seasons, and will also be a good receiver out of the backfield. He may end up fighting off injuries a bit as he'll take a lot of hits, but he'll have a solid career.

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