Cleveland Browns: 7-Round 2018 mock draft, Vol. 5
By Peter Smith
Round 2: Ronald Jones II, RB, USC –- 6-0, 200 lbs. (Listed)
- 3,921 total yards (20.5 percent) and 42 touchdowns (23.4 percent) in three seasons. 3,619 yards rushing (6.63 yards per carry) and 32 receptions for 302 yards.
Ronald Jones is an electric runner that is reminiscent of Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush. He’s remarkably light on his feet with jump cuts, slashing quickness and burst. At times, he makes everyone else look like they are in slow motion.
Jones’ lack of heft jumps out as a small concern, but he’s shown impressive toughness as a runner, able to get difficult yards. He’s also fearless running between the tackles and is one of the most consistent backs in this class when it comes to finishing runs. He gets behind his pads, drives his legs and falls forward. This is more impressive considering how much Jones is utilized on outside runs, he does a fantastic job of squaring his shoulders to the line of scrimmage when taking on contact.
His vision and instincts as a runner are outstanding. Jones does a great job of reading defenses presnap and getting an understanding of the defender he needs to account for so depending on their initial movement, he knows where his cut is going to be, helping him make the right decisions. Jones also works really well in tight spaces, shows terrific balance, able to find seams and keep runs alive while fighting for additional yardage.
Jones is a natural receiver and as much as he showed in his time at USC in this capacity, it still wasn’t enough. He’s got a natural feel for selling delayed routes and finding openings to settle, giving his quarterback a great place to get the ball. Jones has good hands and is a difficult cover. He’s a nightmare in space and is fantastic in the screen game.
Jones has great fundamentals as a blocker. A staple of the Trojans offense was to motion Jones out and have him lead block on smoke screens. In pass protection, Jones is smart in getting up field to give himself room for error as a blocker and has pretty good form when engaged. He occasionally gets overpowered, but since he’s never right next to the quarterback, he’s not pushed into their lap. He’s gonna have to get better to deal with bigger NFL defenders, but the fundamental grounding is there.
Jones has a game that’s built on quickness and speed. That can put on a lot of stress on opponents, especially if the Browns are smart and spread defenses out, increasing the amount of room Jones has. He’s a big time playmaker and when he gets a seam, he can take it all the way. So much of what he does keeps opponents off balance.
Combining what he does with Duke Johnson, they can be a potent combination. Both are problems in coverage and can run the ball, but Jones can run inside, which is the key to making it work. This also would allow a creative offensive coach to put both on the field to exploit opportunities. The Browns have a lot of athletes on their offense and Jones would just continue to add to their level of speed, creating one more point where they can put stress on opponents.