Player: Kenyan Drake

Position: Running Back

School: Alabama

Draft Status: Third Round, 73rd Pick (Miami Dolphins) 

Rookie Running Back Ranking: #8

After earning the Gatorade Football Player of the Year in Georgia as a high school senior, Drake signed on with Alabama as a four-star recruit. He backed up both Eddie Lacy and T.J. Yeldon as a freshman, going for nearly 300 rushing yards and five scores his first season with the Crimson Tide. His best peformance that season came against Auburn in the SEC Title game when he went for 67 yards on 10 attempts. Outside of that, Drake's freshman season wasn't much to write home about. 

With Lacy moving on to the NFL the following year, Drake saw much more action as option 1B behind Yeldon. He responded by averaging over eight yards per touch while scoring nine touchdowns on just 104 touches. Drake's best performance that season came against Kentucky when he put up 106 rushing yards and two touchdowns. He followed that up with a 104-yard performance against Arkansas the following week. 

Unfortunately for Drake, a broken leg cost him all but five games during his junior season in 2014. That led to Derrick Henry overtaking him as the Crimson Tide's top running back the following season. Acting as a second fiddle in Bama's rushing attack, Drake put up double-digit rush attempts just four times as a senior while dealing with yet another injury. 

Scouting Report

Strengths: Explosive. That's the best way to describe what Drake brings to the table. While he will be nothing more than a change of pace back in the NFL, his ability to hit that second level in the beat of a heart makes him a home-run threat every time he touches the ball. A 4.45 40-yard dash and 4.21 20-yard shuttle at the NFL Scouting Combine magnified this to a T. He has a plethora of moves and elite-level cut-back ability when he gets past the line of scrimmage. Plus-level boundary presence and pass catching also makes Drake a solid option as a receiving back in the NFL. 

Weaknesses: Suffered the aforementioned broken leg in 2014 and a broken arm last season. Issues regarding durability has to be the biggest weakness here. Though, Drake does have issues with following his blocks. Sometimes, it seems that his mind is ahead of his body as it relates to what he's doing on the field. Dances too much in the backfield, which will be an issue in the NFL. 

2016 Outlook

If Drake can enter camp healthy and ready to go this summer, he has a real opportunity to be a surprise fantasy performer as a rookie. That's primarily due to the Dolphins' lack of any type of proven back ahead of him on the depth chart. 

As of right now, Jay Ajayi has to be considered Miami's starting running back. He put up just 49 rush attempts as a rookie last season. He's followed in line by a substandard backup in Damien Williams. After that, there's really nothing of substance here. 

While Drake will be hard-pressed to put up more than a dozen or so touches per game, his ability to break the big play and catch passes out of the backfield makes him an intriguing option. Though, that's really only going to be in larger re-draft leagues. In standard contests, keep an eye on Drake throughout training camp and early in the season. If he sees substantial action then, you might want to take a chance. 

Dynasty Outlook

Drake's value here is two-fold. He can catch the ball out of the backfield, which could be a huge if you are looking to utilize a running back as a FLEX option in PPR contests. He also has the ability to put up large numbers of yards with very few touches, yet another sign he can surprise in the fantasy football world. 

However, Drake's value is severely limited by two factors. First off, injuries have to be a concern here. Secondly, he's not going to be one of those backs that puts up 15-20 touches on a consistent basis. Instead, Drake's ceiling is likely close to what we've seen from Darren Sproles and Reggie Bush in the past. That drops him down our rankings considerable.