Dynasty Outlook
March 16
White is currently our RB4 for rookie drafts, and RB26 in our overall dynasty ranks. He should be a second-round pick in dynasty rookie drafts. This could potentially change greatly depending on where White goes in the NFL Draft, but he has the skill set to contribute on all three downs. After catching 43 passes in his final season at Arizona State, we are anticipating White having a receiving role right away for whatever team drafts him. That would create instant PPR value.
Profile Summary
Rachaad White is not considered to be a similar talent to the other backs with more firm draft capital, but he is someone we like to have a meaningful NFL role. Whether or not he can be a complete workhorse remains to be seen, but he has the requisite weight and speed to shoulder an NFL load. Most importantly, he is an adept pass catcher, which should get White on the field immediately. The scouting community does not seem as high on White, which could force him into Day 3 of the NFL Draft.
Vitals
Age (as of 12/31/21) — 23.0
Experience — 5 years
Height — 72.375 inches
Weight — 214 pounds
Hand Size — 9.75 inches
Arm Length — 31.25 inches
Wingspan — 75.375 inches
Forty — 4.48 seconds
Vertical — 38 inches
Broad — 125 inches
By the Numbers
White has only two years of production at an FBS school after starting his career at Mount San Antonio College. Only 190 pounds out of high school, he took a redshirt year as a freshman, and was part of a committee in his second season. His redshirt sophomore season was when White really took off, going over 1,200 yards rushing with 10 TDs to go along with 25 receptions and another two scores through the air. He was MSAC’s third-leading receiver.
White played just four games in 2020 due to injury, but was absolutely dominant in this final season. He rushed for 1,000 yards and caught 43 passes. White’s career averages of 6.3 yards per carry and 11.9 yards per reception are exceptional. He displayed similar efficiency in community college as well. At White’s current weight, and given his display of pass catching in college, he profiles as someone who could participate on all three downs.
What the Scouts are Saying
This is what Lance Zierlein had to say about White:
Running back with size and senior year production, but the tape is more average than exciting. White is a tight-hipped runner lacking desired lateral agility and burst after changing direction. He has a tendency to be slowed or stopped by first-level tacklers but is a more natural runner once he gets up to the second level. He fails to show enough creativity to escape the “gets what is blocked” tag, but he does run with adequate vision. His lack of breakaway speed and limited special teams background won’t help his chances, so he needs to shine early in camp to give himself an opportunity to make a team as a RB3.
Draft Projection
White currently has an expected draft position of 110.4 on Grinding the Mocks, which sources mock drafts around the interwebs. NFL Mock Draft Database, a similar service, has him 122nd overall. After an impressive Combine showing, White appears to be competing to get into the late Day 2 mix. If not, he should be a Round 4 pick.
Comparable Players
I use Principal Component Analysis to evaluate RB prospects. In simplest terms, this kind of analysis looks at relevant data points to find the closest comparable RBs in past drafts. I prefer this to a model output — which yields only a single result — as it can display the possible range of outcomes for a prospect.
Note that the analysis itself isn’t telling us how good a player is; it is simply returning the most similar players. It is then up to us to layer in context and past results to see how good we think this player may be.
White’s comps are exceptional for someone expected to be drafted so late. Chris Johnson and C.J. Spiller were first-round picks, while Joe Mixon was a second-rounder. Though it was short-lived, Jay Ajayi also experienced success while on the other end of White’s draft range.
The rest of this group is fairly unspectacular, and had mixed levels of success at the NFL level. Of course, one issue with using comps to evaluate RBs is that injuries play a massive role. Take Kenneth Dixon for example. He was an excellent collegiate receiver, and caught 30 passes in 12 games as a rookie. But a host of knee injuries effectively ended his career. There is a fair amount of receiving upside in this comp group, which is the primary attraction for White.
