Today, we continue our 2022 Prospect Profile series where we break down each prospect’s outlook for their potential rookie campaign in the NFL by assessing their individual strengths and weaknesses, reviewing potential landing spots, and giving our assessment of their potential fantasy relevance in the coming season.
The next player to continue our 2022 Prospect Profile series is Dameon Pierce, Running Back, University of Florida
Projected Draft Spot
2nd or 3rd Round
Potential Suitors
Seattle, Carolina, Atlanta, Kansas City, Buffalo, Detroit
Strengths
Pierce is built like a tank. He has tree trunks for legs that make him difficult to bring down. He has great balance after contact, which allows him to gain extra yards after being hit. At 5 feet 9 inches and almost 220 lbs., Pierce is elusive for a thick back who has the ability to juke defenders with his hips and shoulders, and he’s quicker than you think laterally. While he doesn’t have a great burst immediately, he does have a gear that makes it tough for defenders to catch him from behind if he builds up a head of steam. He has the ability to bounce runs to the outside and he is dangerous when given space to run. That being said he does most of his damage between the tackles.
Dameon has above average vision that, combined with his footwork, gives him real elusiveness to go along with his raw power. He’s also an above-average receiver who can run a wider range of routes than most running backs his size. He tracks passes well as a receiver, is not afraid to catch the ball in traffic, and has good instincts in his routes on broken-down pass plays. Besides his physical style as a runner, his blocking in the passing game is his biggest strength. He seems to enjoy protecting his Quarterback and absorbing contact in blocking situations. He uses his wide base to square up in pass protection and excels as the lead blocker on designed runs.
I’ve yet to discuss character or a player’s personality in my other player profiles for the Draft. I think it’s unfair to judge a player on items that, unless you know them personally, are just speculation and hearsay. However, I like a lot what I’ve heard about Pierce and from others discussing him. In four seasons in Gainesville, many rightly questioned his playing time and usage. That being said Pierce never questioned his role in the Gators program. In an era of college football where it’s more common for players to skip their bowl game, due to entering the NFL draft, Pierce, when asked why he would play in the 2021 Gasparilla Bowl (who could have blamed him for missing a bowl whose name sounds made up) vs UCF, he answered
“I’m a Gator bro, when I signed here, I signed for four good years to get my education and I am going to rock out until I die, you know?”
Dameon Pierce
Maybe the toughest thing to evaluate with Pierce is his on-the-field production. Looking at his numbers in college, it is hard to explain or understand why he was never given more opportunities. During his senior season, he scored 13 touchdowns on just 100 carries, adding another three scores on 19 receptions, averaging 6.6 yards per touch, and scoring an absurd 13.4% of the time he touched the ball his senior season. PFF graded him for his senior season at 92.9, the highest of any back in a Power 5 conference. His 0.45 forced missed tackles per attempt was the most of any back in college football with at least 85 rushing attempts.
It will make your brain hurt trying to understand what the Florida coaching staff was thinking in not utilizing him more. I think there’s a legit chance in five years Pierce could be the best running back in this class giving Florida fans one more reason to bad mouth the Dan Mullen era.
Dameon Pierce is a RB prospect in the 2022 draft class. He scored an unofficial 6.6 RAS at the Combine out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 517 out of 1519 RB from 1987 to 2022. https://t.co/8Kp2CJOdVD #RAS via @Mathbomb pic.twitter.com/Yixcke2day
— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) March 5, 2022
Weaknesses
I’ll get into the weaknesses we know of in Dameon’s game in a few, but I need to touch on the elephant in the room first and ask the question I’m sure many draft war rooms will be asking.
Why in the world was Pierce used so sparingly in his four years at Florida?
During that time he averaged almost 5.5 YPC and scored on 14.3% of his rush attempts, yet he never saw more than 106 carries in a season. I’ve read as many articles as possible over the last week trying to find something that would make sense of his lack of opportunities. I figured I would find an article stating he didn’t practice well, struggled with grasping the playbook, or he and coach Mullen didn’t have a good relationship. I couldn’t find anything. In fact, most info I did find on Pierce from his coaches, teammates, or the media was all positive. Regardless, this will be a question mark all teams evaluating Pierce ponder, and hopefully, it doesn’t affect his draft status.
Pierce does have some legit areas of concern. Most notably he lacks explosive speed. For physical backs like Pierce in the NFL, there is a very thin line for players who lack that explosiveness. For every Brandon Jacobs and Marshawn Lynch there are the Ron Daynes and Trent Richardsons of the world. He has good patience and vision but needs to prove he can be more consistent in these areas.
Player Comparisons
Current Player (Damien Harris)
The only major difference in these guy’s draft profiles is the production that stems from extra opportunities that Harris saw in college compared to Pierce. They have similar builds, numbers and measurements.
Old School (Marshawn Lynch)
You can tell by this comparison how high I am on Dameon Pierce. Lynch was one of my favorite backs to ever watch in the NFL. He always appeared to enjoy playing football, ran hard, and looked for contact. Pierce shares a physical running style and he is also not afraid to run through opposing defenses. Both are loved by their teammates and fans of their teams. You can see passion for the game in both players and a desire to compete for every inch on the football field. Pierce similarly to Lynch has the ability once he gets a head of steam to leave defenders behind. In the Senior Bowl, Pierce was clocked as the fastest offensive player in the game at 20.66 mph on a run in the 2nd half. Marshawn Lynch’s freshman season at Cal reminds me in many ways of Pierce’s senior seasons at Florida. Lynch despite only seeing 71 carries scored eight touchdowns, Pierce despite only seeing 106 carries scored 13 times. Both excelled in college at making defenders miss when trying to bring them down due to their physical frames and both were excellent pass blockers.
Best Case Drafted By: (Seattle Seahawks)
It’s only fitting with how Pierce reminds me of Marshawn Lynch, for him to be drafted by the team that Lynch had his best years with as a pro. The Seahawks have proven during the Russell Wilson era that they prefer a run first offense. So you can imagine that with Drew Lock now at Quarterback they will continue to run, probably more than ever. Pierce would be a perfect back for what Pete Carroll likes to do. The Seahawks have excelled over the last two seasons in the red zone, finishing 1st and 3rd respectively in scoring opportunities. A team that prioritizes being able to close out drives will see increased value in a back who excels in that abililty like Pierce.
Worst Case Drafted By: (Detroit Lions)
The reasoning for Detroit being the team as his worst landing spot is simple. I would hate for a back as talented as Pierce, who never got an opportunity to be a featured back in college, to enter the NFL and be drafted by a team with a talented, crowded backfield. I want to see what Pierce can do with a bigger workload and see if he can thrive the way I believe he can if given that opportunity.
Fantasy Relevant
As is the case with almost all offensive players their rookie season, their fantasy value will depend on where they are drafted and the opportunities they will receive on that team. In Dynasty leagues, I am very high on Pierce. I think he has tremendous upside and potential. No matter where Pierce is drafted, it’s hard to imagine Pierce, at a minimum, not earning some goal line carries. Due to his large frame, physical style of running, good ball security, and nose for the endzone I would target him in later rounds of my rookie league drafts this year knowing there’s potential for huge upside.
