Ronnie Brown, RB

Height:	6-0
Weight:	233
40 Time:	4.43
College:	Auburn

Senior Stats:
Rushing: 153 attempts for 913 yards (5.97 per attempt) and 8 TDs.
Receiving: 34 catches for 313 yards and 1 TD.

Ronnie Brown is generally regarded as the best overall running back in the draft. Nick Saban coached against Brown when LSU faced Auburn last year and Brown gained 67 yards in 9 carries against Saban's defense. Brown will probably be penciled in as the number one running back on the depth chart as soon as he reports.

Positives: Brown is big, fast, tough and powerful. One analyst stated that Brown has the best hands of any player in the draft, including wide receivers. He has good acceleration into the hole and stays low, running over tacklers. He uses his blockers well and is an excellent blocker himself. He also reportedly has good work habits in the weight room and at practice and is very coachable.

Negatives: You wouldn't expect there to be many for a number 2 pick, and there aren't. However, Brown is reportedly a little stiff in the lower body and doesn't run real crisp pass routes. This stiffness is also supposed to restrict his ability to run cutbacks.

Comments: In Scott Linehan's offense, Brown's ability to catch may turn out to be as important as his ability to run. The real question in my mind, however, is whether or not Brown is a game-breaking player. A player taken number 2 in the draft should have the ability to take control of a game with his play. Unfortunately, I have the uneasy feeling that Brown is just not that good. I hope I'm wrong, but I don't see Brown as the kind of player that will force opponents to gameplan just to stop him. And if that's the case, then the Dolphins would have been better off trading down, even if the price wasn't what Nick Saban felt they should pay.

Links: