Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey is — unsurprisingly — expected to declare as an early entrant for next year’s draft, sources tell Matt Miller of Bleacher Report (video link), who ranks McCaffrey as a lock to be chosen in the top-50 picks.
[RELATED: Leonard Fournette To Enter Draft]
McCaffrey, who won’t turn 21 years old until next June, broke out as a sophomore in 2015, averaging six yards per rush while totaling nearly 2,700 yards from scrimmage. For that performance, McCaffrey earned consensus All-American honors, was named the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year, and finished second to Alabama’s Derrick Henry in Heisman voting. This year, McCaffrey ranks first in the nation in all-purpose yards per game, and fourth in rushing yards per game.
The son of former NFL wide receiver Ed McCaffrey, Christian McCaffrey ranks highly on nearly every major draft board, including that of CBSSports.com, which ranks the Cardinal running back 21st overall and third among backs, behind LSU’s Leonard Fournette and Florida State’s Dalvin Cook. Miller, meanwhile, has McCaffrey at 17th overall, while Mel Kiper Jr. of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) places him fourth among RBs but doesn’t list McCaffrey among his top-25 players.
Looks like a nice solid Steelers 2nd rounder to spell Bell