Sony Michel’s ‘medical concerns’ could help other RBs

2. Ronald Jones II

Jones is a much more similar tailback to Michel in terms of style of play. My suspicion is that a lot of teams had Michel and Jones ranked next to one another. If Michel is forced to drop into a later round, look for Jones to be right there to take his place.

We’re talking about one of the most productive tailbacks in college football last season. Jones racked up over 1,500 yards rushing and 19 touchdowns for the Trojan in 2017. His productivity makes him a very attractive prospect to quite a few NFL teams.

The real question about Jones is how good he can be in the passing game. Despite playing alongside Sam Darnold for USC, he really didn’t flash that sort of ability. If he’s going to make a successful transition to the NFL he’ll need to prove he can be a three down back. His rushing ability isn’t so terrific that it will allow him to function on just first and second down.

Even with those limitations, Jones showed enough during his college days to make him a contender to be a late first or early second round pick. With Michel out of the way, he’ll get a legitimate chance to push his stock into Round 1. That might be a bit of a reach based on his talent level, but it could easily be a consequence of Michel’s fall.