If you follow the Arizona Cardinals, you know that the entire offseason has been dominated by the talk of running backs, whether it happens to be trading for Adrian Peterson or drafting a back. Many mock drafts have the Cardinals taking either Melvin Gordon or Todd Gurley in the first round.
In the video above, SB Nation's Matt Ufford and Ryan Nanni talk about who their top five players are at the position coming out of college. Gordon and Gurley are the easy calls at the top.
After that, you might be surprised/upset/some feeling. They have Nebraska's Ameer Abdullah as the third best back, followed by Boise State's Jay Ajayi and Miami's Duke Johnson.
Nanni believes Gordon is easily the top back. Gurley only "maybe" would be the top guy had he not torn his ACL.
Ajayi gets described as "discount Gurley" or "designer imposter Gurley," which isn't a bad thing, He is a three-down back. The only thing is he has ball security issues. He also had the most touches in college last year, so that could be a question.
Abdullah is the smallest of the five guys and is described as patient as a runner, who will let plays develop.
They describe Johnson as "terrifying" because of the violence with which he runs the ball.
Now, this top five differs a bit from Dan Kadar's rankings.
Here is how Kadar ranks the backs:
| 1. Todd Gurley, 6'1, 226 pounds, RB, Georgia |
| 2. Melvin Gordon, 6'1, 213 pounds, RB, Wisconsin |
| 3. Jay Ajayi, 6'0, 216 pounds, RB, Boise State |
| 4. Tevin Coleman, 6'1, 210 pounds, RB, Indiana |
| 5. Ameer Abdullah, 5'8 1/4, 198 pounds, RB, Nebraska |
The Cardinals are expected to select a back at some point in the NFL Draft. Head coach Bruce Arians says he wants a big, fast back. He also said there are about 15 guys at the position he likes and that guy could be had in the fifth round.
How would you rank the backs and who should be the Cardinals' choice?