Tavion Thomas NFL Draft Profile and Scouting Report
Tavion Thomas Scouting Report: Utah RB #9
Measurements
Tavion Thomas 40-Yard Dash Time – 4.55
6’2” / 238 lbs.
Tavion Thomas Draft Profile
Tavion Thomas is a former 3-star recruit from Dunbar High School in Dayton, OH. According to 247sports, Thomas was the 14th-best player in Ohio. Some of the players that were ranked around him were Darian Kinnard, Jackson Carman, Malik Vann, and high school teammate Joseph Scates. Thomas was also the 20th-best running back in the nation, only 7 spots behind Dameon Pierce. While achieving this status, he acquired 33 Division I offers. Most of the programs that offered him were from Power-Five conferences. After visiting Ohio State, it looked like that is where he was going to commit. However, he decided to stay in the area and play for the Cincinnati Bearcats.
In his first season two seasons at Cincinnati, he played 14 games and racked up 689 yards and 7 touchdowns. Although he had a solid two seasons at UC, he decided to transfer to Independence Community College. During his 2020 season, he played in 4 games where he had 50 carries for 347 yards and 5 touchdowns. Then, he entered the transfer portal again and joined Utah for his final two seasons.
During his 2021 season, he broke the Utah football record for most rushing touchdowns in a season with 21. He also ran the ball 204 times for 1,108 yards. During his final season at Utah, he only played in 10 games due to an injury. In his final season, he had 687 rushing yards and 7 touchdowns.
Strengths
Play Strength
Tavion Thomas is one of the most powerful running backs in the 2023 NFL Draft. In open space, Thomas does a good job of dropping his shoulder to break tackles. After taking a hit, he is also able to stay balanced due to his strong lower body. This allows him to rack up some extra yards after contact. In congested areas, Thomas uses his lower body strength to fight through pressure while staying balanced. His strength is also very apparent when he is pass-blocking. Although he is not a gifted pass blocker, he does a good job of holding his ground against linebackers and defensive backs. This allows him to buy the QB some time to make a play or get rid of the ball.
Vision
Tavion Thomas shows very good patience in the backfield. When he is handed the ball, he shows good instincts and vision to quickly find a hole in the line. Once he finds a lane, he is able to quickly jump cut and work back across the line, and burst to top speed. Thomas also has the ability to get creative when a play breaks down. This is primarily due to his instincts and ability to adjust to the defense. When he reaches the 2nd level, he can quickly read the field and see where he needs to go. Once he gets going, he is very hard to bring down.
Size and Athleticism
As one of the bigger running backs in this draft class, it is fair to say that he is not as elusive as a player like Deuce Vaughn. Thomas stands at 6’2” and weighs 238 lbs. Although this may impact his top speed slightly, he is surprisingly elusive for his size. When watching his film, I was surprised by his ability to make defenders miss in open field. As I mentioned earlier, he has a good jump cut that allows him to change direction quickly. When a defender is closing out on him, Thomas does a good job of using that jump cut to make them miss.
Weaknesses
Ball Security
The biggest concern that I have about Thomas is his lack of ball security. In his FBS football career, Thomas has fumbled the ball nine times. This may not seem like a lot, but I did the math and he fumbles the ball once every 52 carries. To put that into perspective, Bijan Robinson only fumbles the ball once every 107 carries. I should also note that Robinson had more snaps than Thomas and played 2 fewer seasons in college. Fortunately for Thomas, this is an easy fix, and won’t drop his draft stock too much.
Separation Quickness
Although Thomas is pretty athletic for his size, when he reaches the 2nd level he struggles to make big plays. This is primarily due to the fact that most defensive backs and some linebackers have faster top speeds than him. So, after seeing this, I believe that Thomas will act as a feature back in the NFL. I think he’ll be a player with a similar role to Green Bay Packers running back, AJ Dillon.
Tavion Thomas Draft Stock
According to nflmockdraftdatabase, Tavion Thomas is the 277th-ranked prospect in the 2023 NFL Draft. Personally, I believe that he could be a valuable mid-late day three pick. He would be fit for a team that runs a lot of inside zone plays. In this offense, he could act as a feature back where he could thrive on 3rd and shorts and on the goal line. The only reason why I don’t have him going earlier is because of my concerns surrounding his ball security.
Final Thoughts on Tavion Thomas Scouting Report
Overall, Tavion Thomas has a ways to go before I would consider playing him consistently in the NFL. His play strength makes him very appealing to a team that would benefit from having a feature power back. When given the ball in the backfield, he shows good patience and creativity to find a lane and make a play. Thomas is also good at changing direction quickly given his above-average size. This allows him to make defenders miss in open field. If Thomas wants to be a solid back in the NFL, he NEEDS to work on his ball security. As far as his separation quickness goes, I don’t think it is a big problem as long as he is sitting behind an elusive back.
Tavion Thomas Player Comparison
Tavion Thomas reminds me a lot of former UCLA running back Brittain Brown. Both of these players run with lots of power and can easily break tackles. I will say that Thomas is more elusive than Brown. As I mentioned earlier, Thomas also shows me glimpses of being a poor man’s AJ Dillon.
Tavion Thomas Scouting Report- Matthew Lewis
