"Throughout the NFL draft cycle this past spring, there was a steady stream of comments from draft analysts and team executives alike on the talent and depth about to hit the NFL at halfback. Organizations then drafted 25 running backs in Green Bay, including four top-40 picks. By the Jimmy Johnson value chart, it was the most draft capital teams had spent on running backs in a given draft since 2018, when the Giants used the second pick on Saquon Barkley."
"And through five weeks, those backs have been off to a wildly impressive start. In my quarter-season awards column last week, I mentioned that rookie running backs combined to rack up 737 rushing yards in Week 4, the most by any set of rookie backs in any week of September football since the 1970 merger. Week 3 ranked sixth by that same measure, and Week 5 wasn't far behind. It's rare to see so many rookie backs impacting games this early in the season."
"Overall, rookie runners have racked up 2,542 rushing yards through Week 5, good for the 10th most of any class since the merger. Teams leaned more into the run in the past, of course, and so a more realistic measure of their impact might be the percentage of RB rush yards from rookies as opposed to veterans. Well, rookies have 18.1% of running back yardage so far, the fourth-highest rate for any rookie class through five weeks since the merger."
A particularly deep and talented rookie running back group entered the league after the most draft capital spent on backs since 2018. Organizations selected 25 running backs, including four top-40 picks. The rookie rushers generated exceptional early production, combining for 737 rushing yards in Week 4 — the most by any rookie group in a September week since the 1970 merger. Week 3 and Week 5 also produced top marks, and the class totaled 2,542 rushing yards through Week 5, ranking 10th since the merger. Rookies account for 18.1% of running back yardage, the fourth-highest through five weeks.
Read at ESPN.com
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