The Oakland Raiders’ running back depth chart is far from settled going into 2015. Darren McFadden is a free agent. Maurice Jones-Drew looks done. Latavius Murray has shown flashes, but is he the future feature back? Then comes the running back on the Raiders depth chart that few have heard of and even less are rostering even in deep dynasty leagues: George Atkinson.
Atkinson came into the NFL young (21.8 years old to start the 2014 season) after a Notre Dame career that was sparse. His career-high in rushing yards per game was 46, he rarely caught the ball, and was not a high touchdown scorer. One optimistic statistic is Atkinson’s 6.2 career yards per carry, well above average in the projection model. From watching Atkinson in college, his game is rather limited. He burst is evident, but he is a limited inside runner without a clearly defined hole and lacks lateral agility. Some of his best clips were as a kick returner.
Where George Atkinson has promise as a prospect is in his athleticism. At 218 pounds, Atkinson ran a 4.48 40-time. All of his explosive drills are above-average, some in the top 20% of all running back prospects. Overall, Atkinson has an unbalanced projection model profile with a 70 in athleticism, 32 rushing score, and 17 in receiving. Plus he is on the tall-thin side with his frame at 6’1″ and 218 pounds.
Comparable Prospects
Charles Sims: They are similar athletes, but Sims’ production, especially as an elite receiver dwarfs that of Atkinson.
Roy Helu: This comparison is much closer than Sims v. Atkinson as Helu came out as an average rusher and receiver.
Ryan Mathews: Consider George Atkinson the shopping cart of a homeless man version of Mathews. The former first round pick was a better athlete and dominant rusher comes out of Fresno State.
Marlon Lucky, Chris Ogbonnaya: Both came out of college as better receivers than Atkinson, but pretty similar athletically and without above-average rushing marks.
Ryan Grant: The former Packers back is probably the best fit of this list. In fact, Atkinson could be a better version as Grant did almost nothing production-side in college prior to churning out two seasons of VBD in the NFL.
Josh Scobey: A more established runner than Atkinson, but with a similar deficiency in the pass game. Both were similar size and above-average athletically.
The depth chart more than anything is appealing for George Atkinson’s prospects. He is firmly on the radar in leagues with space for 30 or more offensive players and is highly-likely to be available in such a format. Atkinson, without a depth chart break through or buzz, will be an easy cut for a rookie pick or kicker-defense in September. Ideally for Atkinson, the Oakland depth chart loses Darren McFadden and the combination of Latavius Murray and Atkinson are the lone young options.
