The Las Vegas Raiders added another talented running back to their roster during last weekend’s NFL Draft. They selected UCLA’s Brittain Brown in the seventh round. The newest member of the Silver and Black recently shed light on his journey to the NFL, and maybe why the Raiders selected him.
Who is Brittain Brown? Why did the Raiders pick him?
For years, Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels implemented a system where the running back position benefited from a healthy rotation. That worked well with the New England Patriots, and one can assume a similar approach might be taken with his new gig. Picking up not one but two running backs in this past draft surely hints at that. Nevertheless, Brown is no scrub. He pounded the ball for both Duke and UCLA from 2017–2021, accumulating 2,284 career rushing yards.
It should be noted that Brown had several accolades bestowed on him, especially in 2020. He was eighth in the Pac-12 with four rushing touchdowns, seventh with 82 rushing attempts, and fifth with 6.6 yards per rushing attempt.
In a recent Q&A with Levi Edwards of the Raiders’ official website, Brown recalled meeting with the Raiders during the pre-draft process.
“I think they selected me based off my film. They believe I’m similar to the running backs they like to have on their team. That, and I went to the Raiders’ Pro Day and talked to [running backs] Coach Kennedy Polamalu. He liked how I came off toward him and I’ve been working hard, so when I got to the Pro Day, I was ready to rock. I feel like I showed them the best of my abilities while I was there.”
What does Brown bring to the Silver and Black?
Along with his Pac-12 accolades, Brown proved to have several traits in college that will translate for him into the NFL. He possessed sufficient speed to make the necessary cuts and consistently beat linebackers around the corner. Once he broke free, he was hard to bring down.
A lack of elite explosiveness is a concern, but again, his movement makes up for it as he makes the most of what he has, which is a solid build for his size (six-foot-one, 205 lbs.) along with a physical running style. It’ll be a tough road to crack the roster, but Brown should at some point get a shot in McDaniels’ system. If nothing else, he can provide solid depth while he further develops with the Raiders.
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*Top Photo: Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press
