2022 NFL Draft Scouting Report: RB Breece Hall
The 2022 NFL Draft is 10 months away but teams have already started preparing a list of players to watch out for during this year's college football season that they could potentially draft next year. Among the brightest prospects in the draft class is Breece Hall of Iowa State.
Draft analysts tend to overlook RBs and their value, but currently, the 2022 draft class only has a few interesting players worth a look at. Here's an analysis of his playing style and how he could transition into an NFL player.
Breece Hall Scouting Report
Information and Background
School: Iowa State - Junior
Position: RB
Measurements: 6-foot-1, 215 pounds
Collegiate Stats
2019: 12 games, 186 carries, 897 yards, 4.8 yards per carry, 9 TDs/23 catches 252 yards, 11 yards per catch, 1 TD
2020: 12 games, 1572 yards (led NCAA), 5.6 yards per carry, 21 TDs (led NCAA)/23 catches 180 yards, 7.8 yards per catch, 2 TDs
Honors: 2020 Consensus All-American selection, 2020 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year, Finished 6th 2020 Heisman votes
Playing Style and Traits
Breece Hall possesses excellent contact balance, though it is inconsistent. He refuses to go down and only three players have broken more tackles than him since 2019 (Najee Harris, Travis Eteinne, Javonte Williams)
He's not a burner with his speed but can still get down the field and exploit any openings. There are flashes of elite speed to his game. His frame and size are ideal with a strong lower body and legs with large hands.
Breece Hall has the ability to make crisp cuts and his fluid hips allow him to quickly change direction. Vision is part of a great RB's toolset and Hall has a knack for patience and picking the correct lane more often than not. His decision-making requires some work and he needs to learn how to react quicker on the field.
Hall's blocking is decent at best. He doesn't follow through or commit most of the time. This won't affect his stock much but it's definitely a flaw to work on to become a more well-rounded RB.
As a receiver, Hall is capable of running a good route and catching the pass. He wasn't leaned on much as a receiver out of the backfield. In today's NFL, Breece Hall will need to prove himself as a receiver if he wants to be a featured back.
He has been a workhorse (465 carries in two seasons) but needs to add some extra weight for additional power. At his current weight, he will be pounded in the NFL. To be able to plow through defenders rather than bounce off of them, he needs to add mass to his frame.
Draft Stock and NFL Fit
Breece Hall is an effective runner on the outside and would thrive in a zone-blocking scheme. He's not quite a featured RB1 yet but we can re-evaluate after his final college season. Between now and the NFL combine, Hall should pack in 15-20 pounds of muscle and practice his routes.
Breece Hall is currently projected to be the second RB pick in the draft after Isaiah Spiller. His ceiling is the final pick in the first round and the floor is at the end of the second round. Expect him to be selected early in the second round.
Breece Hall is comparable to Najee Harris (2021 1st-round pick). Harris scored the most rushing TDs in 2020 but Hall beat him out for the yardage title. He's not quite the receiver or blocker Harris is, so the second round seems about right for him.
If you factor in the zone-blocking scheme that he'll thrive in, these are the five current teams that could realistically draft Breece Hall: San Francisco (committee-type role), Miami (lead role with help from depth), Atlanta (lead role), Seattle (battle for lead role), and Arizona (lead role with help from depth).