Chicago Bears Draft Scout: Saquon Barkley
Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths
This guy is fast. He has shown himself to be one of the fastest guys in college football, and an NFL team is going to love his speed. In addition to being fast, he has good quickness and can get from point A to point B with the ball quicker than most running backs can. He can see the field well and hasn’t seemed to get caught losing yardage that often. Barkley is “slippery” and can get out from the arms of a defender if that defender doesn’t have him locked down and firmly in his grasp.
More from Chicago Bears News
- Franchise tag and transition tag windows open for Chicago Bears and NFL
- How the Chicago Bears can control the running back market in 2023
- The Chicago Bears can own the city of Chicago moving forward
- Chicago Bears NFL Combine Preview: Quarterback
- 7 best free agent tackle options for Chicago Bears
Barkley is a great athlete and can do a lot of amazing things when he gets to the second level. He can fake out would be tacklers further down the field with a bevy of juke moves that will be the envy of many NFL running backs. Barkley has powerful legs and can drive through tacklers for extra yardage. When it comes to catching the ball, he can grab passes consistently and the mind to run good routes. Using him in the screen game would be beneficial as he can take a long gainer and turn it into a big one.
Weaknesses
Of course, pass blocking is one thing that Barkley needs to work on. Recognizing the blitz and being able to stand in and protect against it will be something he must learn. He also needs to make decisions just a little bit quicker. Other than that, there isn’t much to dislike about Barkley.