The Kansas City Chiefs have spent time hosting Appalachian State running back Jalin Moore before the 2019 NFL Draft is held in late April.
The Kansas City Chiefs continue to check out running back prospects from the upcoming draft class as they sort options for the short- and long-term. The latest reported visit to Arrowhead comes from Jalin Moore, an RB hopeful from Appalachian State.
Moore says he’s also visited with the Chicago Bears, New Orleans Saints, Houston Texans, and Carolina Panthers.
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Moore had an impressive career at Appalachian State, earning Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year honors as a sophomore with 1,402 rushing yards on 237 carries, good for a 5.9 yards/carry average, and 10 rushing touchdowns. He followed up with a first-team all SBC mention the next season as a junior when he set a career best with 12 rushing scores and another 1,037 rushing yards. He also put up another impressive 5.7 yards/carry.
Unfortunately, Moore suffered a fractured right ankle his senior season, which halted any real momentum toward a pro career. Moore played in only 5 games this season, but he still managed to average 6.3 yards/carry and put up 400 total rushing yards and 6 touchdowns.
Moore is projected as a potential Day 3 pick, and even then, he might go undrafted. The entire final day of the draft—meaning the final four rounds—are largely about specific team fits and less about overall talent compared to other positions. A deep running backs class could yield some real potential late or even among rookie free agents. Thus it’s hard to figure out where Moore might fall exactly. It only takes one team, but some real concerns about his pass-catching ability come into view here. He was also forced to miss most drills at the Combine because he was still rehabbing an injury.
That said, Moore was second among all backs in the bench press at the NFL Combine with 27 reps which bolsters his reputation as a pass blocker. He’s useful, to be sure, at the pro level, but again it’s all about a coaching staff’s vision for exactly how he’d be developed and deployed.
For a team like the Chiefs, it comes down to how the front office feels about the current batch of backs in Carlos Hyde, Damien Williams and Darrel Williams. Is there room for someone with Moore’s skill set? Are they looking for a scatback instead? Would they pair the latter Williams and Moore in a competition for the final spot on the depth chart?
Watch how the Chiefs approach the running backs in this draft. If they allow the first few rounds to go by without addressing the position, Moore could be a name worth watching for as the Chiefs come up in subsequent rounds on Saturday afternoon.