NFL Draft 2018 Scouting Report: RB Boston Scott, La Tech

*Our RB grades can and will change as more information comes in from Pro Day workouts, leaked Wonderlic test results, etc. We will update ratings as new info becomes available.

*We use the term “Power RB” to separate physically bigger, more between-the-tackles–capable RBs from our “speed RBs” group. “Speed RBs” are physically smaller but much faster/quicker, and less likely to flourish between the tackles.

It’s possible that a running back prospect (Boston Scott) who didn’t get a Combine or Senior Bowl invite…or any key all-star bowl invite is going to be our highest graded ‘smaller’/speed RB prospect for the 2018 NFL Draft – higher graded than USC’s Ronald Jones or the talented FCS RB Chase Edmonds, Fordham. 

It sounds pretty impressive/radical to push Scott highly, but in reality…smaller RBs (205 pounds or less) are not as coveted for the NFL…because there are larger, 215-220+ pound guys running faster 40-times with better agility times to play in the ‘change of pace’ or ‘third down role’ in the NFL. A smaller RB prospect better be something special in order to make an impact/have a chance in the NFL. Scott grades well, but not ‘off the charts’.

I don’t know that Boston Scott is a radical game-changing, hidden elite sleeper prospect out of nowhere but there are some characteristics that are high-end and make you take note/wonder – and that wonder could make him the most valuable of the smaller RB prospects for 2018.

First, it’s all about his Pro Day/the measureables – the 4.4+ 40-time is pretty good, but not as impressive a feat today as it would have been considered years ago -- but still eye-catching…however, it was everything else that made you take full notice. Scott posted a stellar 6.69 three-cone along with 21 bench reps and 38.5” vertical…a high-end, shifty athlete in a 5’6”/200+ frame. 

I had never heard of Scott until I saw the Pro Day numbers and it forced me to stop what I was doing and go look at some tape. Was it real…is the same guy with the Pro Day numbers actually on the tape? I think so. I think it is real. 

I see a 4.4+ runner with high-end shiftiness on tape. After watching several game tapes, I would pitch him like this – he’s not a classic worker at RB…he’s more speed-that-kills with ‘Houdini’ feet that allows him to escape/dodge/dart away from defenders with top agility skills and make them look foolish. Scott is not lacking the instinct for the RB position, but he’s more get-it-and-go then he is reading blocks and chipping away at defenses. NFL teams aren’t going to use him as their workhorse anyway – but they can use him as a 30-40% of the snaps, offensive weapon…4-8 carries a game, a lot of jet sweeps, 3-6 targets a game on a lot of bubble screens – use him that way and he might be the best smaller RB weapon in the class. 

I say, ‘the best’ (possibly) because ‘out in space’, I don’t think Boston Scott can be tackled one-on-one. Chase Edmonds has a lot of agility/shiftiness in his tape as well…but I see it more with him going downfield. Whereas, Scott has more of that rare ability to pause into danger and just Barry Sanders-like jump cut/bounce from almost standing still and just break a defender’s ankles with his east-west movement. 

Boston Scott is a very raw runner-talent for the NFL and his measurables foretell of someone built for NFL success. With a little work, he can be a poor man’s Tarik Cohen or Tyreek Hill, etc., a quasi or hybrid RB/WR…just a guy you get the ball to in creative ways and see what happens. 

Scott is a quality person off the field and serious about his craft. He’s mature and humble. He ran for 1,000+ yards in 2017. He shows big play/big pop ability…and his measurables are terrific. There’s something here for the NFL. 

The red flag on his resume – Scott suffers from a muscle condition called: Cramp-fasciculation syndrome — a rare muscle condition that leads to involuntary twitching, discomfort and fatigue. He had to leave school for a bit to deal with it but has had it under control for the past few seasons, no major flare ups reported. He was already going to be undrafted, but this condition will ensure he will be a UDFA guy trying to prove himself – which he was a walk-on at La Tech and became an impact player, so the grind is nothing new to him. 

Boston Scott, Through the Lens of Our RB Scouting Algorithm:

8.1 yards per carry in 2015 (34 carries), 7.4 yards per carry in 2016 (70 carries), and 5.7 yards per carry in 2017 (183 carries) – 6.4 yards per carry over his career. Much of it driven by big ‘pop’ plays…but that’s why you want him touching the ball in the NFL…for the big play potential. 

A stat I love on him -- a smaller RB at 5’6”/200+, but tough (21 bench reps) and in 349 touches he only fumbled once in college, and never lost a/that fumble…that includes 29 kick returns as well. He displays decent hands in the passing game as well. 

Scott has taken 11 or more carries in a game 10 times in his career and has averaged 100.7 yards and 1.0 TDs rushing per game…8.3 yards per carry. 

2018 Pro Day Measurables…

4.40-4.45 40-time, 4.15 shuttle, 6.69 three-cone

21 bench reps, 38.5” vertical, 10’1” broad jump

The Historical RB Prospects to Whom Boston Scott Most Compares Within Our System:

You see Ray Rice on the list and it gets you excited but Scott really is not that kind of runner. The Kendall Hunter and Bobby Rainey comps fit better…guys who were 3rd down type backs back in a day when smaller RBs were looked down upon/not utilized as innovatively as they are today. 5+ years ago, Scott is a kick returner only. In 2018, he’s got a chance at a role like an Austin Ekeler or Tarik Cohen, etc.

*A score of 8.50+ is where we see a stronger correlation of RBs going on to become NFL good/great/elite. A score of 10.00+ is more rarefied air in our system and indicates a greater probability of becoming an elite NFL RB.

All of the RB ratings are based on a 0–10 scale, but a player can score negative, or above a 10.0 in certain instances.

Overall rating/score = A combination of several on-field performance measures, including refinement for the strength of opponents faced, mixed with all the physical measurement metrics – then compared/rated historically within our database and formulas. More of a traditional three-down search – runner, blocker, and receiver.

*RB-Re score = New/testing in 2018. Our new formula/rating that attempts to identify and quantify a prospect's receiving skills even deeper than in our original formulas. RB prospects can now make it/thrive in the NFL strictly based on their receiving skills – it is an individual attribute sought out for the NFL and no longer dismissed or overlooked. Our rating combines a study of their receiving numbers in college in relation to their offense and opponents, as well as profiling size-speed-agility along with hand size measurables, etc.

*RB-Ru score = New/testing in 2018. Our new formula/rating that attempts to classify and quantify an RB prospect's ability strictly as a runner of the ball. Our rating combines a study of their rushing numbers in college in relation to their offense and strength of opponents, as well as profiling size-speed-agility along with various size measurables, etc.

Raw Speed Metric = A combination of several speed and size measurements from the NFL Combine, judged along with physical size profile, and then compared/rated historically within our database and scouting formulas. This is a rating strictly for RBs of a similar/bigger size profile.

Agility Metric = A combination of several speed and agility measurements from the NFL Combine, judged along with physical size profile, and then compared/rated historically within our database and scouting formulas. This is a rating strictly for RBs of a similar/bigger size profile.

2018 NFL Draft Outlook:

There is no chance Boston Scott is getting drafted…he was not invited to the Combine, or key bowl/all-star circuit, and the mere mention of a muscular condition – it means no chance at all of getting his name called. He’s a future UDFA…and that’s not that big of a deal, many make it via the UDFA route – but it’s still another hurdle to climb.

If I am an NFL GM, I don’t draft Scott either…no reason to make the investment heavily for the RB position with so many nice options out there, but I would have Scott on my UDFA call list for a training camp for sure. I’d like to work with him but he’s not a ‘must have’ sleeper prospect. 

NFL Outlook:   

All depends upon what happens on the depth chart above him. Sometimes a guy like an Austin Ekeler or Bobby Rainey are in the right place at the right time but then there are guys just buried in the depths like Dwayne Washington or Josh Ferguson or Brandon Wilds, and they never have a moment and they’re still waiting for that moment. Here’s hoping Scott gets his chance…he’s one of the ‘good guys’. He deserves it. 

4/9/2018