Running Back is one of the bigger needs for the Las Vegas Raiders going into the 2025 NFL Draft.
Fans are expecting the team to take a more traditional lead back, but what if Las Vegas takes a Tre Henderson or Dylan Sampson early, and are looking for another back late? Last year, the Raiders took a small school running back named Dylan Laube in the sixth round. This year, there is another small school back starting to make noise.
Enter Lan Larison out of UC Davis. Larison is coming off a season where he ran for 1,465 yards on 284 carries. He added 847 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns on 62 receptions. Larison was dominant at the FCS level, racking up a school record 6,504 career yards.
Unlike Laube, Larison has NFL size and athleticism. While still a diamond in the rough, he is 6-0 and 215 pounds and ran a 4.46 40-yard dash at his Pro Day.
Without further ado, let's take a look at what makes Larison such a productive and unique player.
UC Davis Running Back Lan Larison Scouting Report
Games Watched: @ Cal, Illinois State, Montana State
Notes
- Height: 6'0
- Weight: 215
- Two-star recruit in the 2020 class
- First team All-American (FCS) 2023-2024
- First team All-Big Sky 2022-2024
- Big Sky Offensive Player of the Year 2023
- Freshman All-American 2021
- Second team All-Big Sky 2021
Positives
- Excellent hands, has produced some unreal highlight catches
- Very good pass blocker, with sound technique and power
- Experience as a return man
- Fantastic contact balance, often breaking multiple tackles on one play
- Experience running in zone and gap schemes
- One cut runner, but can make defenders miss in space
- Excels on counter plays and cutback runs
- Gets skinny through the hole and then back to square to take on contact
- Versatile chess piece, who lined up at running back, wildcat quarterback, out wide, and in the slot
- Tough runner, doesn't shy away from contact
When watching Larison against FCS competition, you feel like you're watching a grown man play against high schoolers. He is clearly the best athlete on the field, combining good speed, with size and power that lesser competition just couldn't handle.
Whether it was breaking multiple tackles on his way to the end zone, hurdling a future insurance salesman, or stunting on the entire defense with a one-handed catch, Larson did it all.
Larsion plays with good hustle on every play. He is more than just an athlete, even if he is still a bit of a raw prospect. He is very sound in pass protection, has sold vision and experience in both gap and zone. In the Cal game, Larison showed he can pick up tough yards and run through contact when playing up in competition. When he allows plays to develop, he can excel on cutbacks.
His versatility is truly unique. Not only was he used as a wildcat quarterback, but he made a few impressive throws. They used Larison all over the field, in every way possible, and offers some potential Taysom Hill ability.
Negatives
- Competition level was generally weak
- As a route runner, could be sharper, and relies too much on athleticism to get open
- While he has NFL burst, his long speed is a bit of a question, as his ability to accelerate, was better than his top speed
- Lacked patience at times and didn't allow holes to open up
- Fumbled 4 times in 2024
The flipside of Larison always being the best athlete on the field is that the other guys on the field were just not NFL caliber. I seem to like him as a runner more than others, but it will be an adjustment consistently running against NFL defenses.
At times, he can rush his decision, and not allow blocks and lanes to develop. While he profiles as a third down back, he needs to run his routes with sharper breaks and more precision. When watching the Cal game, he didn't get open very often so he will need to work on winning with more nuance, instead of just being the better athlete. While he does a lot of things well from the level he's coming from, he's still very raw as a player and will need to develop the finer points of his game to stick in the NFL as more than a special teamer.
Lan Larison NFL Pro Comparison: Taysom Hill
Hill is a little bigger at 6-2, 221 pounds, and Larison is probably too small to line up as a tight end, but their skill set and usage as a Swiss army knife player are the closest comp you will find for such a unique player.
As runners, both have a similar style, and combine toughness and contact balance with underrated athleticism to make big plays. As a receiver, Larison has the talent to be a similar weapon as well, albeit mostly from the slot, or backfield. Like Hill, Larison will have to earn his way into the offense by standing out on special teams, and I suspect he has the toughness and mentality to do so.
Lan Larison NFL 2025 Draft Grade: 6th Round
While Larison will have to adjust to NFL competition and tidy up his game, I believe in this guy. He has the build, toughness, and mentality to make it as a special teamer, and eventually work his way into a third down back role. He has the size and contact balance to be a three down back if he can put it all together.
Even if he never outplays his draft grade, he will work his tail off, earn every snap, and make the running back room, and special teams' group, better.