Chiefs Draft Prospects: Armond Smith

We continue taking a look at the prospects for the Kansas City Chiefs in the upcoming draft by turning our attention to…running back.

We’ve been using the NFL Mocks seven round mock draft for the Chiefs as a jumping off point for looking at possible prospects. We’ve gone through all of the picks and we’ve now arrived at the last suggested selection for the Chiefs, Union running back Armond Smith.

Here is what Mocks had to say about Smith:

"The Chiefs had the best running game in the NFL last year. They had arguably the best RB in Jamaal Charles and a nice complimentary back in Thomas Jones. However, there isn’t much behind them and Jones is over 30. Armond Smith is very undersized weighing in at 5 ft 9, 186 pounds, but he has elite speed and elusiveness. He is capable of catching passes out of the backfield and once he has the ball in space, look out. He’s a guy worth a shot in the 7th."

It is hard to think of RB as a position of need for the Chiefs but it is. In fact, nearly every position on the Chiefs lacks depth and therefore needs serious upgrades. We have yet to hear if the Chiefs are planning to bring back third string running back Jackie Battle and Thomas Jones showed serious decline at the end of the 2010 season. Running the football is KC’s bread and butter and if something were to happen to Jamaal Charles it could be a deathblow to the Chiefs’ offense.

So who is Armond Smith?

Well as you saw above, Smith is 5 ft 9 inches and weighs 185. Not exactly a bruiser, is he?

I’ve read a few scouting reports on Smith and it doesn’t appear that most of the analysts thing he can be a viable back in the NFL. He is a track/speed guy who played at a small school and destroyed fools with his speed.

The knock on him, other than his size, is that he doesn’t display great instincts. He often tries to bounce the ball outside too quickly and fails to display a good lean when running.

Here is a bit from NFL’s Wes Bunting:

He’s a tough kid who isn’t afraid to stick his head in as a blocker, but isn’t much more than a cut-only guy. Displays natural hands in the pass game, can catch the football out of the backfield and looks comfortable working his way open in space and creating after the catch.

Impression: An undersized, explosive athlete who has a real initial burst, second gear and shiftiness to his game. Runs too upright to be a back in the NFL, but could be a potential slot guy/special teams return man; he’s worth a shot in camp.”

From www.fanaticalfootballfiend.com (share this quote)

I don’t like this pick. In fact, I like it the least of all the picks Mocks we’ve looked at. This kid sounds like the poor man’s Dexter McCluster and right now Dexter McCluster is the poor man’s Daren Sproles and Sproles.

The Chiefs already have Jamaal Charles and Dexter McCluster so if they are going to add a running back then they need to add some beef.

I actually think the Chiefs should avoid drafting a running back all together unless by some miracle Mark Ingram were to fall on their lap in the first round. If that were to happen the Chiefs could actually have potentially the greatest running back tandem ever. I know the Chiefs have other needs but don’t tell me that the possibility of a backfield of Charles and Ingram doesn’t give you a special feeling your private areas.

Anyway, I digress. If the Chiefs are going to take a flyer on someone in round seven, it shouldn’t be on Smith…unless they are planning on starting a track team.

For fun though, here are some highlights of Smith. It is like 16 minutes long. The kid sure is fast but then again, he has NFL speed and is playing against a bunch of scrubs. What do you guys think?