Oakland Raiders: Running Back Options Not Named Lynch Or Peterson
By Kevin Saito
Samaje Perine is most definitely going to be a second-day draft pick. He’s not one of the guys routinely mentioned as being at the top of the running back class, and in fact – he hasn’t been mentioned all that much.
Which could make him a solid value pick for the Raiders in as a third or fourth round pick.
He’s 5’11”, 233 pounds, which means that he’s going to be a compact little wrecking ball. Although Joe Mixon sucked up some of his carries as a junior, Perine still managed to 1,060 yards on 196 carries – an average of 5.4 yards per carry. He also added 12 touchdowns, giving him 49 over his three-season career at Oklahoma.
Scouts knock him for being more of a banger – a back without a lot of finesse to his game. They also believe he may have trouble getting to the edge in the NFL. But as a straight ahead, north to south runner, Perine could do well in Oakland’s offense. He can grind out the tough yards and would be a wrecking ball in short yardage/goalline situations.
"Perine is a physical runner who can create additional yardage through power and can be a complimentary “banger” for a team who already has a slasher."
Perine has the brute stength and ability to be a power runner that both Washington and Richard don’t have. He too, could be the thunder to their lightning. As a committee, adding Perine to the stable of backs the Raiders already have, he could be a very solid contributor to the run game.