[SF_Cardinal_Fan]

[quote author=SF_Cardinal_Fan link=topic=16796.msg191995#msg191995 date=1492648452]
[quote author=Boston Card link=topic=16796.msg191985#msg191985 date=1492636988]
No team is going to draft a running back in the first round unless they have a gaping need at the position.

BC

For more than a decade the NFL has been under appreciating the running back position. And college programs have followed that trend as well, favoring the passing game..
That last five years of drafts had an average of only one first round running back selection, and those picks were mostly late first round.
But I think if NFL teams make a commitment to the running game, including using their high draft picks on RB's, those teams will recognize the benefit of a balanced offense.
[/quote]

I don't think it is that teams undervalue running backs, it's that it seems harder to predict success in the NFL at the running back position than at other positions.  Every position obviously is going to have its beta, but some seem to have fewer busts at high draft picks or surprises from low draft picks than others.  But running backs seem to have a much weaker correlation between draft position and ultimate success than most.  So, if a guy projected to go in the first round is only somewhat more likely to find success than a guy projected to go in the fourth round, why invest a high pick for a (relative) crapshoot.

BC
[/quote]

My observation is that there are a lot of high first round draft pick non productive NFL linemen, QB's, defensive backs, and wide receivers. In recent years those positions seem to be the most popular (high picks) among the NFL GM's charged with making their team's draft selections.
I consider a "successful draft pick" to be one where the player ends up as a legitimate NFL starter for 5 or 6 seasons. So, by using that criteria,  placekickers, punters, tight ends, and certainly running backs should be worthy of high first round pick selection.
If Christian McCaffrey can be a legitimate 5+ season NFL starter, whether that be at RB, WR, Special Teams, or a combination of all three roles, then I think he is worthy of a high first round pick.
Former Stanford great Darrin Nelson was multi purpose type ball carrier and receiver who was the 7th pick in the first round of the 1982 draft.
I understand it is a different era now, but McCaffrey has a larger physique and is a more dynamic and explosive player than was Nelson.

[SF_Cardinal_Fan]

[quote author=SF_Cardinal_Fan link=topic=16796.msg191995#msg191995 date=1492648452]
[quote author=Boston Card link=topic=16796.msg191985#msg191985 date=1492636988]
No team is going to draft a running back in the first round unless they have a gaping need at the position.

BC

For more than a decade the NFL has been under appreciating the running back position. And college programs have followed that trend as well, favoring the passing game..
That last five years of drafts had an average of only one first round running back selection, and those picks were mostly late first round.
But I think if NFL teams make a commitment to the running game, including using their high draft picks on RB's, those teams will recognize the benefit of a balanced offense.
[/quote]

I don't think it is that teams undervalue running backs, it's that it seems harder to predict success in the NFL at the running back position than at other positions.  Every position obviously is going to have its beta, but some seem to have fewer busts at high draft picks or surprises from low draft picks than others.  But running backs seem to have a much weaker correlation between draft position and ultimate success than most.  So, if a guy projected to go in the first round is only somewhat more likely to find success than a guy projected to go in the fourth round, why invest a high pick for a (relative) crapshoot.

BC
[/quote]

My observation is that there are a lot of high first round draft pick non productive NFL linemen, QB's, defensive backs, and wide receivers. In recent years those positions seem to be the most popular (high picks) among the NFL GM's charged with making their team's draft selections.
I consider a "successful draft pick" to be one where the player ends up as a legitimate NFL starter for 5 or 6 seasons. So, by using that criteria,  placekickers, punters, tight ends, and certainly running backs should be worthy of high first round pick selection.
If Christian McCaffrey can be a legitimate 5+ season NFL starter, whether that be at RB, WR, Special Teams, or a combination of all three roles, then I think he is worthy of a high first round pick.
Former Stanford great Darrin Nelson was multi purpose type ball carrier and receiver who was the 7th pick in the first round of the 1982 draft.
I understand it is a different era now, but McCaffrey has a larger physique and is a more dynamic and explosive player than was Nelson.