Round 6: Bryce Love
A talented runner like Bryce Love shouldn’t be available this late in the 2019 NFL Draft. Unfortunately, a untimely ACL tear will likely cost Love the entirety of his rookie season, meaning a team would have to be OK with shelving him for a year. If the Baltimore Ravens believe he’s worth stashing, round six is a killer deal.
Love was once a Heisman Trophy candidate, after a ridiculous 2017 season in which he rushed for over 2,100-yards and scored 19 touchdowns. Love’s speed was game-changing, and it forced defenses into awkward positions. While Love was never an elite runner, once he found a crease he exploded through it, and after that he was gone.
One of Love’s biggest knocks during his time at Stanford was his lack of production as a receiver. While this remains a concern, right now we need to focus on his recovery. Besides, even if Love never becomes an elite receiver he remains a valuable home-run threat. Knowing that at any moment Love can break off a big-run and score touchdowns is enough to get him plenty of touches per game.
With Love, you’re essentially purchasing a lottery ticket. If you win, you just found yourself a perennial 1,000-yard rusher who will snag a couple Pro Bowl nods. If you don’t, and the odds are always tilting this way, you lose a pick on a player who you knew may not ever return to form.
If the Ravens draft Love, it had better be because they addressed the position already. Love needs a red-shirt kind of rookie season to heal properly, and Baltimore currently lacks the proper depth to sustain a successful rushing attack. After 2019, Love could very well pay back his dividends, and them some.