Leonard Fournette, or Dalvin Cook?
In an NFL draft that is loaded at the running back position, it’s no certainty that NFL clubs will all have the LSU and FSU running backs as the top two rushers available. But they’re unquestionably two of the very best, and you can bet that a debate on which of the two is the better prospect will be had in plenty of scout meetings.
For NFL.com analyst Bucky Brooks, however, it’s a debate that’s already been had, back in 2007.
"(Fournette or Cook) will remind me of the debate that was had when Adrian Peterson and Marshawn Lynch came out. Dalvin Cook isn’t a Marshawn Lynch clone, but part of the debate (was), who is the better prototypical pro back? At the time, (it was) Marshawn Lynch, because he caught the ball out of the backfield at Cal," Brooks said on Tuesday’s Move The Sticks podcast. "Adrian Peterson was a rough-and-ready runner, but he didn’t give you any pass production. And he really hasn’t done that in the league. He’s been more of a primary runner, he’s had tremendous success. But in today’s game, being pass-centric, it’s all about the quarterback, and your running back has to be a triple threat."
NFL.com analyst Daniel Jeremiah believes Fournette could be capable of being a more complete running back, but it’s something scouts will want him to prove next month at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.
"It’s going to be huge for Leonard Fournette at the combine and at his pro day to show that he can run routes and catch the ball," Jeremiah said. "I thought he got a lot better in that this year than he was previously. But he’s going to have to show that he can be that guy who can contribute on third down in passing situations, because that is going to be something he gets hit with."
Lynch enjoyed a nine-year NFL career before retiring, rushing for 9,112 yards for the Buffalo Bills and Seattle Seahawks, along with 1,979 receiving yards. The Bills selected him No. 12 overall in 2007. The Vikings made an even earlier move for Peterson, selecting him five picks before Lynch at No. 7 overall. Peterson enters his 11th NFL season in 2017 with 11,747 career rushing yards and roughly the same receiving production (1,945 yards) as Lynch had.
Jeremiah also suggested that a team which prefers Fournette can likely acquire a running back with more third-down ability later in the draft: "I can go in the fourth round and get my Donnel Pumphrey or whoever else I need to come in there and play that James White-type role for me," he added.
Both Fournette and Cook, of course, were prolific three-year rushers at their respective schools before entering the NFL Draft as underclassmen. Cook, however, caught 79 passes for 935 yards in his FSU career. Fournette caught just 41 passes for 526 yards in his three years for the Tigers.
It’s a debate likely to rage on over the next 11 weeks leading up to the draft. The Carolina Panthers are the only team with a top-10 pick for whom running back is a primary draft need. But whether Fournette or Cook is selected first won’t quell the question of which is the right choice — that answer will be a few years in the making.
Follow Chase Goodbread on Twitter @ChaseGoodbread.
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