Ravens Draft: Running back target for each day of NFL draft

IOWA CITY, IOWA- OCTOBER 07: Running back Akrum Wadley #25 of the Iowa Hawkeyes rushes up field during the fourth quarter on a breakaway touchdown run against the Illinois Fighting Illini on October 7, 2017 at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images)
IOWA CITY, IOWA- OCTOBER 07: Running back Akrum Wadley #25 of the Iowa Hawkeyes rushes up field during the fourth quarter on a breakaway touchdown run against the Illinois Fighting Illini on October 7, 2017 at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images) /
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Derrius Guice, RB, LSU

The Positive:

Guice is a bruiser. He’s not a running back that defenders are going to get big hits on, because he is usually the one putting his head down and running through them. He’s also more agile than he gets credit for. He can make defenders miss without having to run though them. He refuses to go down and makes yards out of nothing just from his physicality. Guice is a guy who can come in and be a workhorse back from day one.

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The Negative:

He has dealt with his fair share of injuries. The healthy Guice is a completely different player than the injured one. He showed competence as a receiver in the bowl game LSU played against Notre Dame, catching two passes for touchdowns, but he hasn’t been used heavily in the pass game throughout his career at LSU. Over three seasons, he hauled in just 32 passes.

The Bottom Line:

This guy is likely to be a first-rounder for good reason. Guice is a back that defenders are going to hate to tackle. He’s not going to have any trouble creating yards on his own. He’s listed at 5-foot-11 and 224 pounds, which is just about exactly what you want in a running back that’s going to carry the load for you. This would be a “best player available” pick for the Ravens at 16, and given that they were interested enough to bring him in for a visit in March, I can see them making it Thursday night.