As the NFL season winds down, FantasyPros will be taking a look at early NFL draft scouting reports before the combine in March. Here’s a look at Evan Hull.
Check out all of our 2023 NFL Draft Scouting Reports & Prospect Profiles 
2023 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Evan Hull (RB – Northwestern)
5’11” – 210 lbs.
Background:
Carried the ball relatively sparingly in his first two seasons with the Wildcats, rushing 46-286-4 (6.2) as a freshman and 25-209-2 (8.4) as a sophomore before taking over the starting role in the second game of his junior year, a campaign in which he finished with a 196-1,009-7 (5.1) line and 33-264-2 through the air. Concluded his collegiate career with a solid 221-913-5 (4.1) line on the ground and a 55-546-2 receiving line.
Positives:
Big, rocked-up running back with two years of solid starting experience in a major conference. Patient enough to wait for lanes to open, and awareness is good enough to recognize cutback opportunities. Footwork is adequate to shuffle into lanes when running downhill; occasionally able to sidestep penetration and salvage plays. Gets up to speed relatively quickly and runs behind his pads. Powerful enough to run though arm tackles once he gets going. Finishes runs and exacts a price from defenders who tackle him. Vision in space is surprisingly good for a player with his body type, showing some ability to weave through second-level defenders. Has solid ball security, with just five career fumbles. Showed the ability to be a regular part of a team’s passing attack this past year, dropping only three passes all year.
Negatives:
Senior season was inefficient relative to his junior year. Not the most fluid athlete; plays a bit stiff. Can make excess cuts in the backfield. Center of gravity gets high at times, negating some of his natural strength. Needs a head of steam to get going, or gets wrapped up near the line of scrimmage for little to no gain; also more of a hard runner than a pile-pusher or consistent tackle-breaker. Not going to be a home-run hitter in terms of his top-end speed, and wasn’t even particularly dynamic in college this past year, with only three games in which he recorded a run of over twenty yards and none in which he had a thirty-yard run. Struggled in pass protection, although he does have the frame to potentially develop into a decent blocker.
Summary:
A between-the-tackles runner whose best traits are his vision and toughness, he can shuffle into lanes and shows above-average burst for his size, protecting the football and offering some reliability as a safety valve. May not have the speed, explosiveness, or power to secure a lead-back role at the pro level, but could find a role as a member of a running back committee in a predominantly gap-based, smashmouth-type offensive scheme.
Projection: Round 5-6
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