Jaret Patterson: Where does he fall in the running back class of 2021?

Projecting the Jaret Patterson NFL Draft Stock

The running back position has seen its value drop pretty dramatically in the NFL over the past few years. Jaret Patterson isn’t a top running back in this class. Putting those two together means Patterson is looking at a relatively low ceiling as far as his draft stock is concerned. It’s not that Patterson doesn’t have the skills, it’s that his particular skill set isn’t valued the way it would have been a decade ago.

Over the summer, I had this to say about Patterson’s draft stock for Pro Football Network.

"“With all that being said, I still think that Patterson will have a season on par with the incredible sophomore effort he put out and will declare for the 2021 NFL Draft. When he does so, I expect him to be squarely in the top-10 at his position and become a potential steal for some team in rounds three or four.”"

Overall, I still agree with that assessment. Patterson may find himself outside the top 10 of the position in a stacked class. However, I do think he’ll find himself in that early day 3 range, likely somewhere in the fourth round. He’s going to come in and make himself a factor in a team’s running back room from day 1. Provided that team is playing to Patterson’s strengths and not trying to make him into something he’s not.

Patterson would be best served going to a team that needs a physical, downhill runner, and who can pair him with a shifty back who can be the pass-catching threat out of the backfield. If a team already has the “lightning”, Patterson is more than capable of producing the “thunder”.