4. Paul Perkins
Coming into the NFL Paul Perkins was a notable NFL comparison for Khalil Herbert. The two had a similar running style as well as very similar athletic profiles. They also had similar rookie seasons, as you can see below.
| Rushing | Receiving | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rk | Player | Year | G | Att | Yds | TD | Y/A | Lng | Rec | Yds | TD | Y/R | Lng |
| 1 | Khalil Herbert | 2021 | 17 | 103 | 433 | 2 | 4.2 | 29 | 14 | 96 | 0 | 6.9 | 20 |
| 2 | Paul Perkins | 2016 | 14 | 112 | 456 | 0 | 4.1 | 22 | 15 | 162 | 0 | 10.8 | 67 |
Paul Perkins was a fifth-round pick but entered a room with just Rashaad Jennings. Perkins was able to get some work, and looked fine, inspiring hope for year two. However, just like Bryce Brown, and Herbert, the transition from year one to two also featured a new coach. The Giants went from Ben McAdoo to Steve Spagnuolo.
Perkins saw work as a rookie and was not quite the fit the following season. Then, Saquon Barkley was drafted and the Giants moved on from Paul Perkins after two seasons. These outcomes are not exact comparisons, but it is surprising that the situations seem similar, and both rookies wound up not building off of that season with a new coaching staff.