Will Arizona State’s Eno Benjamin challenge to be 1st RB drafted in 2020?

Arizona State running back Eno Benjamin is beginning to receive preseason hype as one of the best running back prospects for the 2020 NFL draft.

The conversation surrounding the 2020 NFL draft running back class has focused largely on Clemson’s Travis Etienne and Georgia’s D’Andre Swift, with Wisconsin’s Jonathan Taylor slowly entering the fray for RB1 status.

But there’s one player being overlooked by the masses right now: Arizona State’s Eno Benjamin.

Don’t include the Athletic’s Dane Brugler in that groupthink. He currently has Benjamin ranked as the second-best running back prospect entering the 2019 college football season behind Swift.

“Benjamin rushed for a single-season school record 1,642 yards last season and after watching his tape, it wasn’t surprising to learn that 972 of those yards came after initial contact (according to Sports Info Solutions), which was the fourth-most in the FBS,” Brugler wrote. “Although his lack of weight isn’t ideal, he is compact with a strong lower body, which aids his balance and ability to break tackles. Based on his 2018 film, Benjamin is a player worthy of top-50 overall consideration – we’ll see if that holds up after his junior season.”

Brugler is one of the most respected draft analysts in the industry, so when he offers an opinion about a prospect, it’s worth your time to pay attention and dig into the film a little more.

And that’s what I did.

I appreciate Brugler’s assessment of Benjamin’s ability to break tackles, but I don’t value his overall skill set nearly as much. He reminds me quite a bit of former Michigan State standout, Jeremy Langford.

Langford was a fourth-round selection of the Bears in 2015. He played two seasons in Chicago before latching on with the Falcons in 2018. He’s averaged just 3.5 yards per carry on 219 career rush attempts.

This doesn’t mean to suggest Benjamin will have the same struggles as Langford once he reaches the NFL. Langford couldn’t stay healthy, but he was also a good example of how the NFL game is faster and hits a whole lot harder than college defenses. Benjamin, who stands an estimated 5-10 and 201 pounds, simply doesn’t possess the kind of size needed to project as a full-time back.

Ironically, Etienne is the same size but offers an elite trait — explosive burst and long speed — to make up for it. Benjamin lacks that edge.

So while I do think Benjamin has the all-around game to challenge as a draftable prospect once the year-end position rankings solidify, ranking him above Etienne at this point is a bit rich for my taste.