Oakland Raiders: Saquon Barkley, 2018 NFL Draft Profile

Saquon Barkley is the best running back talent in the 2018 NFL Draft. Could the Oakland Raiders land him in the top 10? Here is his NFL Draft profile.

The gap between the best running back in the 2018 NFL Draft and the second best running back in the 2018 NFL Draft could not be more vast. We know that Penn State Nittany Lions junior tailback Saquon Barkley will be the first off the board. Frankly, he’s probably the only first-round running back in this draft, since Bryce Love decided to go back to Stanford for his senior season.

Barkley is a lock to go in the top-10 of the 2018 NFL Draft. He could go as high as No. 1 to the Cleveland Browns for all we know. They are the Browns for a reason. Another team that could likely take him in the top-five would be the Indianapolis Colts at No. 3.

One would think Colts general manager Chris Ballard will want a Pro Bowl level talent in the backfield lining up behind Andrew Luck for years, right? Together, Barkley and second-year pro Marlon Mack could be the dynamic tailback tandem the Colts need to get out of the AFC gutter.

So how do the Oakland Raiders fit into all of this? It’s pretty simple really. The Silver and Black are one of the few teams picking in the top 10 that could look to draft a superstar running back this spring. But does Barkley stick around to No. 9 or No. 10 for the Raiders to draft him? Is he worth trading up for?

First things first. The Raiders need to figure out if veteran running back Marshawn Lynch will be part of the Jon Gruden era of Oakland football. Both men will meet at some point this offseason to discuss if the one-of-a-kind talent in Lynch has a role with Gruden’s team. If not, then the Raiders have to address the running back position yesterday.

The Silver and Black can’t expect to win games with the lackluster tandem of Jalen Richard and DeAndre Washington in their backfield. Oakland would need to sign a guy on his second contract in free agency or pursue someone like Barkley in the NFL Draft. Odds are, the Raiders do pick up a free agent running back this offseason anyway if they move off Lynch in 2018.

So what makes Barkley so great? He can do everything and did everything for Penn State. Barkley is 5-foot-11, 230 pounds and could be the bell-cow back Oakland covets. He is ridiculously fast for a guy of his size.

In the last three NFL Drafts, teams have taken a tailback in the top-10 and it has worked out. The St. Louis Rams took Todd Gurley out of Georgia in 2015. In 2016, the Dallas Cowboys selected Ezekiel Elliott out of Ohio State. Last spring saw the Jacksonville Jaguars take Leonard Fournette out of LSU.

Barkley can and will be compared to those three backs. He’s probably the most similar to Elliott, as in he can run, catch and pass protect at a high level. In terms of breakaway speed, Barkley has that one-cut and go ability of Gurley, though not as tall and doesn’t run as upright. Barkley isn’t as punishing of a runner as Fournette, but could prove to be as dominant in goal-line offenses.

Simply put, the Raiders would be making a great choice in selecting Barkley in the top 10, but only should he fall to him. There is no reason to trade up to draft a running back in this era of the NFL.

Must Read: Raiders 2018 NFL Draft: 5 mid-round RBs to target

Landing Barkley would be fantastic, but there are plenty of guys that will go in the second or third round that will prove to be great NFL players. Players like Kerryon Johnson, Derrius Guice, Nick Chubb and Sony Michel are just a few of the running backs the Raiders could draft if they can’t get Barkley at No. 9 or No. 10.

That being said, Barkley is the only guy in the NFL Draft this year that will be a proven bell-cow back right out of the gate. Guice might be the next best bet coming out of LSU. Chubb and Johnson could be too, but both have sustained injuries in college and could break down as rookies at the NFL level. Michel is talented, but not built to have 20 carries a game at the NFL level. He didn’t even do that in college at Georgia

In three years at Penn State, Barkley had 671 career carries for 3,843 yards and 42 touchdowns. As a pass catcher, Barkley had 102 career catches for 1,195 yards and eight touchdowns. Just get the ball in his hands and good things will happen.

More from Just Blog Baby

Barring injury, it’s really hard to see Barkley busting in the NFL. He may not achieve the lofty expectations people are placing on him coming out of Penn State, but expect Barkley to have at worst a solid eight-to-10-year NFL career. He’s the type of running back that makes quarterbacks look better. Whichever team drafts him might be getting a perennial Pro Bowler for all we know.

Could that team be the Raiders? Potentially, but it’s more likely than not he’ll be off the board before the Silver and Black could think to draft him. There is a great chance Barkley could be the first non-quarterback taken in the upcoming draft.

He seems like a great fit for the Colts at No. 3. It would be odd to see the New York Jets not draft him at No. 6, but they are the Jets. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers could use a running back too picking at No. 7, but who knows where general manager Jason Licht is leaning in this draft.

The Chicago Bears are all set at running back at No. 8. Then it’s Raiders and San Francisco 49ers time! The 49ers could lose Carlos Hyde in free agency, so they might want to get an offensive weapon for franchise quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to work with going forward. Should that be the case, the 49ers might lean wide receiver at No. 9 if that’s the way the coin flip goes.

Next: Raiders 2018 NFL Draft: 5 DBs to take in first round

So for the Raiders to get Barkley at No. 9 or No. 10. Here’s what will have to happen. All four first-round franchise quarterbacks have to go top eight, period. You’d then have to expect Bradley Chubb, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Quenton Nelson and probably Courtland Sutton to be the other top-eight picks. It’s hard to envision a scenario where Barkley isn’t one of the first four non-quarterbacks to be taken. He’d look good in Silver and Black, but don’t get you hopes up for landing Barkley, Raider Nation.

Home/Las Vegas Raiders Draft