Over the past four months, I have provided you all more detailed scouting reports on the top prospects in this draft. However, due to time constraints that come along with finishing your final semester of college, working, and serving in church ministry, I was unable to write detailed scouting reports for many of the players I have rated in the 40-125 range of this draft. The intention of today’s article is to get you mildly familiar with the best prospects who will still be available in Rounds 2-4.

Today, we will take a closer look at the running backs.

*Note: Players who I have already written full scouting reports for will not be featured in these articles. You may access those on my position rankings article, which may be accessed HERE.

Kevin Winston, Jr. | S | Penn State | 6’2″, 215 lbs

• Great combination of length and athleticism
• Great open-field tackler
• Poor instincts and late to react to in-breaking routes
• Feet and hips do not move in sync
• Medicals will determine how high he can go on Day 2

Xavier Watts | S | Notre Dame | 6’0″, 204 lbs

• His success is predicated on elite instincts and ball skills
• Plays a clean game and rarely blows a coverage assignment
• Sufficient range; can align at either safety position and cover most tight ends and slot receivers
• Diagnoses play quickly but can be slowed down by subpar change-of-direction speed
• Lack of elite athleticism could limit his ceiling in man-heavy defensive schemes

Billy Bowman, Jr. | S | Oklahoma  5’10”, 192 lbs

• Combination of speed and instincts allow him to close on receivers quickly
• Impressive ball skills
• Lack of elite functional strength and poor tackling angles have resulted in a number of missed tackles
• Can overrun running plays; lacks gap discipline on the rare occasion he is playing in the box

Andrew Mukuba | S | Texas | 5’11”, 186 lbs

• Great instincts allow him to break on routes; reads the route well from the free safety spot
• Smooth hips; impressive change-of-direction speed
• Solid athlete but needs to add weight in order to make open-field tackles in the NFL.
• Running backs can juke him out one-on-one due to his over-eagerness and lack of discipline

Craig Woodsen | S | California | 6’0″, 200 lbs

• Great anticipation as a run defender in the box and can get shoot gaps quickly to get into the backfield
• Great attitude and approach; doesn’t shy away from tough assignments and tackles
• Fluid backpedal in coverage
• Susceptible to double-moves and misdirection by receivers

Jaylen Reed | S | Penn State | 6’0″, 211 lbs

• Impressive tackler coming downhill
• Strong instincts will allow him to thrive as a rotational safety in a zone-heavy scheme
• Not great footwork and only average range in coverage
• Doesn’t close on defenders as quickly as I would like

Stay tuned to FFSN for all the latest breakdowns, news, and rumors as we approach the 2025 NFL Draft!