Texas running back Jonathon Brooks could be the first player selected at his position despite his season-ending injury. After playing behind Bijan Robinson and Roschon Johnson in 2022, Brooks finally had a chance to start with both players declaring for the 2023 NFL Draft. The 6′-0″, 199-pound running back was up to the challenge, recording 1,139 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on 187 carries (6.1 yards per attempt) to go along with 25 receptions for 286 yards and one touchdown.
Unfortunately, Jonathon Brooks only played in 11 games after suffering a season-ending ACL injury midway through the season. While ACL injuries used to be a kiss of death for running back, medical advances in the past 15-20 years have rapidly accelerated the healing process.
With the buildup to the NFL Draft currently ongoing, there was a chance that Jonathon Brooks could see his draft stock fall due to his injury. However, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport does not think this will happen. According to the league insider, Brooks is “healing well” and should be ready for NFL training camp with whichever team ends up drafting him.
#Texas RB Jonathan Brooks, the top ranked RB on @MoveTheStick and @BuckyBrooks lists, is healing well and as expected after ACL surgery this season, source said. Dr. Dan Cooper projects that he should be cleared by training camp. But obviously won’t do Combine drills.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 26, 2024
Jonathon Brooks “Healing Well” After Season-Ending Injury
The fact that Jonathon Brooks could be the first running back off the board despite his injury says a lot about both Brooks and the rest of the class. After a recent run of great classes, most draft analysts believe the 2024 running back class lacks difference-making talent.
Because of this, teams might be more willing to take a risk on Jonathon Brooks, even with his injury. Had he stayed healthy, he would probably be the unanimous RB1 in this class. However, while he carries some risk, it appears as though he’ll be looking like his old self in no time at all.
A lot can happen between now and the 2024 NFL Draft, as we still have to go through the NFL Combine and free agency. However, if the draft happened tomorrow, Brooks would probably go off the board at some point in the late second round to the middle of the third round. Assuming nothing significant happens to change his stock, these five teams should be interested in going after him.
Possible Team Fits
Houston Texans
The Houston Texans have a young franchise quarterback on a rookie deal and $73.95 million in cap space. With this in mind, the team can go crazy in free agency and use the NFL Draft to shore up some secondary needs. Devin Singletary played well last year, but he’s not the long-term answer at running back. Jonathon Brooks has the potential to be Houston’s running back of the future, and he should contribute in Year 1 once he’s back from injury.
Kansas City Chiefs
Isiah Pacheco runs like a man possessed and has earned the starting job in the Chiefs backfield. However, as of this posting, he’s the only reliable option on the depth chart. Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Jerick McKinnon are both free agents, and neither player is particularly reliable even when they were on the team. Pacheco could use a partner in the backfield, and Jonathon Brooks is a perfect fit, injury and all.
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are betting favorites for Derrick Henry, but this team should also look into a younger option. Henry has remained an eternal outlier at the position, as every metric in history states he should have slowed down by now. While he’s been able to beat the odds thus far, he is a human being (most likely) and will slow down eventually. Jonathon Brooks is a perfect selection, as he can slowly work his way back from injury in 2024 before earning a larger role in 2025 and beyond.
Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals can save a good chunk of change by cutting Joe Mixon, but they’ll need to find someone capable of handling a high volume of touches. Chase Brown showed some flashes in the NFL, but he’s a little too unproven to handle such a heavy workload. Jonathon Brooks can split carries with Brown as he works his way back from injury before taking over as the starter down the stretch.
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers made a mistake with Miles Sanders. Rather than buying into the sunk-cost fallacy and trying to make it work, they need to invest in someone like Jonathon Brooks who might be able to be effective in this offense. The biggest question is whether the Panthers, a team with multiple roster holes and no first-round pick, would be willing to use a third-round pick on a relatively unimportant position like running back.
Main Photo: Ricardo Brazziel – USA Today Sports
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