Ashton Jeanty isn't your typical workhorse running back. The Boise State Bronco might be the 2025 NFL Draft's unicorn.
Jeanty, who began his football journey overseas in Naples, Italy, has been deemed the best RB prospect scouted by Maurice Jones-Drew since he joined NFL Media in 2015. In that span, five RBs have been selected in the top 10 of their respective draft classes.
Now, Jeanty is looking to join that exclusive group, and his stats strongly support the argument for his inclusion.
Jeanty started out as a jack-of-all-trades on the gridiron, playing RB, wide receiver, defensive end, linebacker and safety throughout his days at Lone Star High in Frisco, Texas. An impressive senior year in which he averaged 20.5 points per game helped lead Jeanty to Boise, Idaho.
After making two starts in 2022, Jeanty exploded onto the scene as a sophomore. Jeanty led the FBS with 159.7 scrimmage yards per game, becoming the only FBS player to post 1,000-plus rushing yards and 500-plus receiving yards in the 2023 season. Those marks set high expectations for what would become a historic final chapter in Jeanty's collegiate career.
Jeanty ran wild to the tune of 2,601 rushing yards last season -- just 28 yards shy of Pro Football Hall of Famer Barry Sanders' 1988 NCAA record. The 2024 Heisman Trophy runner-up, Jeanty won the Doak Walker Award (nation's top RB) and the Maxwell Award (player of the year). He led the NCAA with 2,750 all-purpose yards and averaged 185.8 rushing yards per game, the highest FBS mark since Hall of Famer LaDainian Tomlinson (189.7 rushing YPG) in 2000. Jeanty's whopping 7.0 yards per carry average and 151 missed tackles forced were both FBS-leading metrics, as well.
What Jeanty accomplished in three seasons at Boise State was unprecedented -- just like his unique upright running stance. The Broncos have produced recent NFL RB talents like Doug Martin, Jay Ajayi and Jeremy McNichols, but Jeanty now holds the school's rushing records. He could join Martin as the only Boise State RBs to be selected in the first round of the NFL draft.
Jeanty's final collegiate career stat line (40 games, 26 starts):
- Rusher: 4,769 yards, 6.4 average yards per carry, 50 touchdowns
- Receiver: 80 receptions, 862 yards, six touchdowns
What skillset, specifically, does Jeanty bring to the next level? Below is a full scouting report (courtesy of NFL.com draft analyst Lance Zierlein).
Strengths
- Runs low to the ground with a wide base, fast feet and good vision.
- Trusts play design and won't come off the track without reason.
- Picks up momentum and danger with every step he takes.
- Instant burst limits time for defenders to read and react.
- Creates yardage with a rare trio of wiggle, power and speed.
- Rockets past contain, around the corner and into space.
- Had runs of 50-plus yards in nine of his 14 games in 2024.
- Thwarts tacklers and re-ignites the run with contact balance and leg drive.
- Taps the gas and skips past tacklers in short spaces when needed.
- Plays fast and maintains his pace through cuts and change of direction.
- Consistently creates magic with cutbacks as a zone runner.
Weaknesses
- 2024 workload bordered on the absurd, with 374 carries, including 279 over the final nine games.
- Tight hips limit ability to make sharp, downhill cuts.
- Might need to gear it down a hair to allow blocks to develop.
- Fumble-prone once defenders start badgering the football.
- Inconsistent mirror with wide hands in protection.
How Jeanty Projects in the NFL
Next Gen Stats gave Jeanty a prospect score of 95 (elite/blue-chip tier), the highest grade among all prospects in this year's draft class, regardless of position. He is one of four prospects to earn a grade of 90 or higher and his score breaks down into a 98 for production and 83 (green/good tier) for athleticism. Jeanty's score of 95 mirrors the one Next Gen Stats awarded to Bijan Robinson in 2023.
NFL.com also crowned Jeanty as the 2025 NFL Draft's highest-graded prospect across all positions. Jeanty's 7.15 mark classifies between the Pro Bowl talent and perennial All-Pro categories. For reference, the highest grade a prospect can earn is 8.0 (perfect prospect).
Here is how several NFL.com analysts forecast Jeanty's future.
Daniel Jeremiah
- Latest mock: No. 6 overall (Raiders)
- Pro comparisons: Dalvin Cook and J.K. Dobbins
Mike Band
- Latest mock: No. 6 overall (Raiders)
- Band added there is a 45% chance of Las Vegas selecting a RB with their first draft pick, per DraftKings odds.
Bucky Brooks
- Latest mock: No. 20 overall (Broncos)
- Pro comparison: Josh Jacobs
Charles Davis
- Latest mock: No. 6 overall (Raiders)
Eric Edholm
- Latest mock: No. 6 overall (Raiders)
Gennaro Filice
- Latest mock: No. 5 overall (Jaguars)
Maurice Jones-Drew
- Latest mock: No. 6 overall (Raiders)
Rhett Lewis
- Latest mock: No. 6 overall (Browns via trade)
Chad Reuter
- Latest mock: No. 6 overall (Raiders)
Lance Zierlein
- Latest mock: No. 10 overall (Bears)
- Pro comparison: LaDainian Tomlinson
Just two RBs have been top 10 selections since 2018: Saquon Barkley (No. 2 overall by NYG in 2018) and Bijan Robinson (No. 8 overall by ATL in 2023). With most analysts in agreement that Jeanty should crack that range, let's compare the Boise State product to Barkley and Robinson. Watch NFL Pro’s All-22 footage of each comparison via NFL+ Premium below.
Jeanty:
- Prospect measurables: 5 foot 8 1/2 and 211 lbs
- Scrimmage YPG (FBS): 140.8
- Yards per touch (FBS): 6.8
- Scrimmage TDs (FBS): 56
- Prospect measurables: 6 foot and 233 lbs
- Scrimmage YPG (FBS): 132.6
- Yards per touch (FBS): 6.5
- Scrimmage TDs (FBS): 51
- Prospect measurables: 5 foot 11 and 215 lbs
- Scrimmage YPG (FBS): 136.0
- Yards per touch (FBS): 7.0
- Scrimmage TDs (FBS): 41
In an open letter to NFL general managers, Jeanty boldly asserted he can be for his future team what Barkley was for the reigning Super Bowl champion Eagles.
"If you pick me, it's simple: I'm coming to your franchise to do what Saquon and the Eagles just did. I'm coming to win, big, soon," Jeanty wrote. "It's TACKLE football… you know what I'm saying?"
"I'd draft the guy they can't tackle."
Check out these additional resources to dive deeper into Jeanty's game.
- Watch Daniel Jeremiah's film analysis of Jeanty on NFL+. Jeremiah ranked Jeanty as the No. 3 overall prospect in his latest Top 50 hierarchy of the 2025 NFL draft class.
- Analyze team needs, scheme fits and front office tendencies with Draft IQ to determine Jeanty's best NFL landing spots. Four teams with a top-10 overall pick have RB listed as a major need (Browns, Patriots, Raiders and Bears).
- Watch Jeanty's First Draft feature to learn about how the RB's upbringing shaped his approach to football.
