2025 NFL mock draft: Chiefs, Cowboys trade into top 10, plus should we be concerned with Ashton Jeanty’s size?

Ashton Jeanty is the consensus top running back in the 2025 NFL Draft class. I’m not going to argue against it. As somebody who has followed Jeanty’s entire college career and included him on my Heisman ballot (though behind Travis Hunter), I do not need to be convinced about how good a player Jeanty is.

However, I do wonder if we’re all a little too sure.

Saquon Barkley just got paid, and we’re in a bit of a “Running backs are BACK!” narrative cycle. Is the success of the NFL’s top running backs having too much of an influence on how we view all running backs in the draft again? It’s possible, and it could be leading to there being too much stock put into the possibility of Jeanty being a high pick, but there’s another part of Jeanty’s profile I believe is being ignored a little too easily.

Jeanty didn’t compete in any drills at the NFL Scouting Combine, but he was measured. He came in at 5-foot-8 and 211 pounds. Here is a list of NFL running backs who were 5-foot-8 or shorter to amass at least 4,500 rushing yards in their career.

That’s it. That’s the entire list. Four guys. Granted, one of them, Barry Sanders, may be the greatest running back of all-time. Then there’s Maurice Jones-Drew, who had an excellent career in his own right. But Barry Sanders was Barry Sanders. We throw the word generational around a lot, but Sanders truly met the criteria. As for MJD, he’s a much better comp for Jeanty because while he was an inch shorter, he weighed the same.

If you use a top-10 pick on Jeanty and get MJD, you’re probably happy with the pick. But would you be happy with it if you got Devonta Freeman’s career? What if you get Devin Singletary (74th overall, 2019), who is at 4,486 yards right now but has bounced around between three different teams?

I’m not here to tell you Jeanty will be a bust because I don’t believe that to be the case. All I’m trying to say is that if he isn’t, he’ll be an outlier. There’s far more risk here than we all seem to realize.

For more draft coverage, you can hear in-depth analysis twice a week on “With the First Pick” — our year-round NFL Draft podcast with analyst Ryan Wilson. You can find “With the First Pick” wherever you get your podcasts: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, etc. Listen to the latest episode below!

The 2024 NFL Draft will take place from April 25-27 in Detroit. More draft coverage can be found at CBSSports.com, including the weekly updated draft order and a regularly available look at the eligible prospects.