After spending the first four years with the Oakland Raiders, running back Latavius Murray has moved on, signing with the Minnesota Vikings. Murray was a sixth round pick in 2013, and he became the featured back of the Oakland Raiders in 2015, and rushed for over 1,000 yards. A year later, his rushing yards went down, but so did his attempts. That didn’t stop him from getting 12 touchdowns though.
We have signed RB Latavius Murray (@LataviusM).
📰: https://t.co/MJlzFJ4oNK pic.twitter.com/EjrfcNdmB3
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) March 16, 2017
Latavius Murray's deal with Minnesota is for three years, but can be voided after one season. Possible shot at free agency again in 2018.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) March 16, 2017
Latavius Murray To Sign With Minnesota Vikings
Latavius Murray has a strange combination of size and speed. He’s the tallest running back in the NFL, but he’s also one of the fastest. He’s surprisingly shifty for his size, and he’s got good hands out of the backfield. On paper, Latavius Murray should be the best running back in the NFL.
Unfortunately, he doesn’t really play to his size. Instead of running over defenders, he tries to run around them, and with a center of gravity that high, it hurts him. When Murray gets into open space, he’s unstoppable. The problem is that he doesn’t always get to open space.
However, Latavius Murray has had strong performances as well. At a time when the Kansas City Chiefs weren’t giving up 100 yard rushers, Murray had 112 yards on four carries. Just last year, Murray was a crucial part of a bruising beatdown against the Denver Broncos. Running backs are a dime a dozen, but few are as complete as Murray is.
He’s big, fast, strong, and well-rounded. He’s a solid receiver out of the backfield, and if he gets into open space, he’s gone. Murray is arguably the most unique running back in all of football, and unless the Raiders are lucky, they’ll have a really hard time replacing him.
Murray is only 27 years old, and has fewer than 600 attempts so far in his young career. It will be interesting to see what he can do behind a different offensive line.
