Does Mathews have the speed to get past defenders at the next level? Wes Bunting
Ryan Mathews: Fresno State: No. 21, RB, 5-11, 220
A tall running back with a well-built upper body, Mathews isn't compact in his lower half and looks thin through his calves. He allows himself to get too upright when attacking the line of scrimmage, and although he will drop his pad level on contact, he exposes himself to some big hits inside. He showcases a good first step and gets up to speed quickly when attacking the line of scrimmage. Mathews displays good vision and feel inside and has the cutback ability to quickly find a crease and get north to south. He does a nice job sidestepping defenders in space, isn't overly elusive inside and lacks great lateral quickness, but he's more of a slasher inside who can make the initial man miss. He showcases the ability to accelerate out of his breaks and has a bit of a second gear to his game.
He isn't an all-out burner but has the speed to create plays at the second level. Mathews is a workhorse who has shown the ability to carry the load and be productive against eight- and nine-man fronts. He runs hard and displays natural balance and toughness in his game, but because of his upright running style, I can't see him generating many yards after contact or breaking many tackles in the NFL. Overall, he displays some natural running instincts and the lateral quickness to make defenders miss in tight areas and find creases at the line of scrimmage. However, his thin lower half and upright running style scare me too much to think he can carry the load at the next level. He looks more like of a solid No. 2 runner.
Grade: 5.9
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Wow! Calves are too thin? Are you looking at his calves in elementary school? I would have to say that Ryan is built more than a guy I idolized growing up. Maybe you've heard of him, his nickname is "Sweetness". He had a pretty sucessful NFL career with "thin calves".
As far as his speed, have you actually watched any of his games? Ryan's game speed is way better than any of his timed 40s. If you're any kind of scout, you should know that the timed 40 is not an indicitive of game speed.
I'd like to see some of your previous scouting reports to see those players turned out.
Wow, what a bizarre story on Ryan Mathews. Did Bunting just pick the name Ryan Mathews and make up a bunch of physical attributes to complete a story for a deadline. I can't find a single sentence in this story based in fact. How in the world could anyone say Ryan Mathew's has a "thin lower half"? At least he spelled Mathews correctly. I appreciate the breadth of information available on the Internet, but sometimes it is a little scary to read some of the pure drivel written by people portraying "experts". Crazy.
Sorry, but this year I saw Matthews at an indoor soccer complex and me and my girlfriend both commented on matthews' huge calves. Dude is built like a truck, and this was before football season started. Just thought I'd share some first hand knowledge, unlike these made up reviews. If his last name was Tebow, I bet his calves wouldn't matter...
Sorry dude. Mathews is a machine! Just watch his game real against Boise this past season. Boise was pretty stingy against the run. I saw the game in person. The guy can take it up and down the field all day.
Just flat out awful analysis of Mathews. What the hell are you talking about? There is a reason why you are writing for this website and not someplace better. Do some freakin research or something. What a waste of time reading this crap. Get a clue before you embarrass yourself any further.
HAahahahaha. This is the worst analysis I have ever seen!!!!! You have Dwyer at #1 and he ran a 4.60 40 yard dash. LMFAO!!!!!! You are terrible. Is this for real????? How can you be taken seriously when you are so obviously hilariously clueless about how to rate players? Just total garbage and an embarrassment to humanity. Just please stop before you make more of a mockery out of yourself. I am trying to contain my laughter but I can't stop. You are HORRIBLE!!!!!!
WOW!! Poor Wes, we all have our opinions but no need to get ignorant gentlemen. I must note, Mayock is very high on Matthews and he's got a pretty good track record but only time will tell...
Mathews DOES have an upright running style and doesn't have GREAT elusiveness, just average...DOES have a 2nd Gear...WES GOT THOSE THINGS RIGHT.
He did seem to have more power than that, and I could certainly see him using his average agility in combination with his above average power to break some tackles. San Diego will enjoy him. Book it.....
Mathews has been compared to Laurence Maroney at another draftnik page. That scared the hell out of me...
I see that I don't need to say much, everyone else pretty much nailed it. Mathews was like 70 yards short of leading the nation in total yards rushing...and the man had 70 less atempts then Gerhart. Mathews ran over the likes of Boise, Wisky, Cincy, and Illi.; the rest of the teams stacked the box with 9 guys and he still had 100yd. games against them. KC or SD would make a great choice by picking this guy up.
He is very consistent in breaking tackles, stiff-arming out of trouble, cutting back for extra yards, and in not getting getting stopped at the LOS.
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Mar 02, 2010
08:23 PM
LOL, this is one of the worst reviews I've read. No one agrees with you, and it is easy to see why. His lower body strength is in the top portion of this year's draft class. He is very consistent in breaking tackles, stiff-arming out of trouble, cutting back for extra yards, and in not getting getting stopped at the LOS.
Bottom line, he is one of the best physical specimens in this draft and just ran the 40 to demonstrate his top-end speed that was doubted.