Draft Profile: Clyde Edwards-Helaire

February 25, 2020 /
  • Height: 5’8″
  • Weight: 209lb
  • College: LSU
  • Tape watched: Alabama (2018), Florida (2018), Auburn, Georgia, Texas
  • NFL Comparison: Maurice Jones-Drew

Pros

  • Burst
    What makes Clyde Edwards-Helaire so much fun is his ability to disappear in a pile, only to explode out of it untouched. Edwards-Helaire possesses game changing burst. His one-cut-and-go is a splash play waiting to happen.
  • Receiving
    Second in the FBS in receptions, Clyde Edwards-Helaire may have the best hands in this class. A natural receiver, Edwards-Helaire rarely lets the ball into his body and secures it quickly to get up field. He mostly ran flat routes from the backfield, but showed the ability to separate on choice routes vs. linebackers.
Edwards-Helaire adjusts well to the pass and makes a great play to get upfield.
  • Contact Balance
    Clyde Edwards-Helaire isn’t the hardest back to tackle, but if defenders don’t wrap him up, he bounces off defenders and gets to the next level fast. He plays with a good pad level, considering his size, and never shies away from contact.
  • Elusiveness
    Edwards-Helaire has an arsenal of juke moves at his disposal. Great lateral agility lets him eat up space in front of defenders and make last second cuts. His spin move is one of the most exciting moves in the draft class.

Cons

  • Size
    While size doesn’t directly correlate to NFL success, Edwards-Helaire goes down pretty quickly when defenders can get hands on him. He doesn’t often run through leg tackles, and can get stuffed trying to move piles.
  • Blocking
    A glaring weakness in Edwards-Helaire’s game is his pass protection. He can get blown back into the quarterback and doesn’t give great chips to help lineman. He whiffs on cut blocks too often as well. He will have to improve if he wants to be a true three-down back in the NFL.

Overview

Clyde Edwards-Helaire has the tools NFL teams look for in this day and age of high-powered offensive schemes. He has good speed, burst, and can catch the ball with the best of them. Offensive coordinators will have no trouble scheming him into game plans on Sundays. While he has the skill and durability to be a three-down back, he will need to vastly improve his blocking abilities to be trusted in that capacity.