Kennedy Brooks NFL Draft Overview
Position: Running Back
Height: 5’11’’
Weight: 216 lbs.
School: Oklahoma
Kennedy Brooks 2022 NFL Draft Profile
Kennedy Brooks is a great running back prospect who had an overlooked and underrated career at Oklahoma. Brooks tallied over 3,000 yards in the three seasons that he played. Also, he scored 31 touchdowns in his productive career as a Sooner. Brooks led Oklahoma’s rushing attack and helped contribute to the team’s 11-2 overall record. Brooks was awarded the offensive MVP in 2021’s Alamo Bowl for his great performance. In this game, he rushed for 141 yards and three touchdowns, and led the team to a 47-32 win.
Brooks was a four-star recruit out of Mansfield High School in Texas. He had offers from many prestigious Division I colleges, including Michigan and Tennessee. Brooks chose Oklahoma over many other colleges after rushing for nearly 3,000 yards and 40 touchdowns in his high school senior season. In Brooks’ freshman year in 2017, he was redshirted and did not play at all. In 2018, Brooks amassed 100 rushing yards in five of the team’s later games. Brooks had four 165+ yard games that year and was later named to USA Today’s Freshman All-American Team.
In 2019, Brooks continued his successful career by being named to the second-team All-Big 12. In his second season, he rushed for 1,011 yards and six touchdowns. He was certainly a factor in the team’s Big 12 Championship win and their Peach Bowl CFP appearance against LSU. Behind a great offensive line, Brooks ran for an average of 6.5 yards per carry, which ranked first in the Big 12 and ninth in all of college football. He decided to sit out the 2020 season and entered the 2021 season knowing it would be his final year.
Outlook
Brooks’ best season of his college career came in 2021. He rushed for a career-high 1,253 yards and 13 touchdowns in his senior year. Brooks rushed for 100 yards in five games this season and ran for over 200 yards and two touchdowns in the team’s wild comeback win over Texas. Brooks had zero fumbles all season and only had one fumble over his three playing years. He is a shorter but stronger back who has great feet and ball security. He showcased his skills, namely strength and ball security, in his senior season, and now looks toward the NFL Draft.
Strengths
- Great powerful, strong runner
- Has good acceleration despite being slower
- Good at changing direction; has quick feet
- Amazing ball security
- Very elusive
- Not afraid to make contact despite his smaller size
- Ability to play well, even without the lead
Weaknesses
- Average speed; ran a 4.59 40-yard dash
- Smaller in size
- Not as involved in receiving game
- Often stops moving/slows down in chases, making him vulnerable to other tacklers
NFL Comparison: Najee Harris
Teams Who Could Draft Brooks: Houston Texans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Baltimore Ravens, Seattle Seahawks, Arizona Cardinals
Projection: 5th-7th Round Pick (Mid-to-Late Rounds)
The Bottom Line on Kennedy Brooks
Brooks will be a solid NFL running back, and will likely fill a backup or situational role on the team that drafts him. Brooks had a reputable college career with consistent statistics that will help teams draft him. He is ranked around the tenth or so best running back in the class, but he definitely has the potential to be one of the best out of his class. His overwhelming amount of strengths definitely helps his draft stock. Many NFL teams will love his downhill running ability and his fearlessness when it comes to contact. Plus, when you pair those characteristics with good ball security and decent acceleration/change of direction, you create a running back with great potential.
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