Breaking Down the Tape
Reviewing Top Tier RBs Eligible for the 2008 NFL Draft

I'd like to break down the tape of one top tier running back per week each of the next 12 weeks. I'll do this by watching one of their games and commenting on their play in that game, including fakes and blocking assignments, as well as their NFL prospects. My schedule for this feature is as follows:

9/1 - James Davis, Clemson vs. Florida State
9/8 - Steve Slaton, West Virginia vs. Marshall
9/15 - Jonathan Stewart, Oregon vs. Fresno State
9/22 - Mike Hart, Michigan vs. Penn State
9/27 - Ian Johnson, Boise State vs. Southern Mississippi
10/6 - Jamaal Charles, Texas vs. Oklahoma
10/13 - Darren McFadden, Arkansas vs. Auburn
10/20 - Felix Jones, Arkansas vs. Mississippi
10/27 - Ray Rice, Rutgers vs. West Virginia
11/3 - Ryan Torain, Arizona State vs. Oregon
11/10 - Yvenson Bernard, Oregon State vs. Washington
11/17 - Tashard Choice, Georgia Tech vs. North Carolina

Obviously all of the defenses these players play will not be equal, but I still think we can get a good approximation of the skill sets that each of these running backs will bring to the NFL. This list also could be affected by injuries to the players and I will try to juggle it to fit everyone in if that occurs.

Steve Slaton - Jr. - West Virginia (5'10" 190)
Jersey:#10
Age on 9/1/2008: 22.68
My Pre-Season Rank: #6
My Current Rank: #6

Tony Nowak's Take:
After exploding on the scene as a true freshman, the 2005 Big East Rookie of the Year was a first team AP All-American for an encore in 2006. He has over 3,000 rushing yards and 37 total TDs in just two seasons. A big time home run threat, he averaged 7 ypc overall and almost 30 ypc on his 16 scores last year. This spring, he has participated in drills, but no contact or scrimmages as he recovers from off-season surgery on his right wrist. The injury actually occurred in 2005 and plagued him the last third of the season. There isn't much more for Slaton to achieve individually at the collegiate level. A slasher with elite speed and good hands, he needs to add some more bulk to be a workhorse back at the next level, but clearly has special ability. 2008 Running Back Draft Class

Stats (from ESPN):

Breaking Down the Tape: Steve Slaton, West Virginia vs. Marshall, 9/8/2007

1st Play - 1st Quarter - 12:59 - Run Middle
Slaton takes the handoff and is immediately buried in his tracks by defenders that broke through. Nothing he could have done.

2nd Play - 1st Quarter - 12:23 - Pass Route
Slaton lined up left of QB and runs into the flat. Pass goes to the right flat.

3rd Play - 1st Quarter - 9:30 - Pass Block
Slaton stays into pass block. Doesn't engage a defender, but doesn't need to as none get through. Pass goes for a TD.

4th Play - 1st Quarter - 5:54 - Block
On a designed QB run, Slaton blocks. First he does a nice job on a defender near the LOS, then he shows the hustle to get down field as the QB gets into the second level. However, he runs right by a defender that he probably should have gotten. Overall, nice job blocking and good hustle to get downfield.

5th Play - 1st Quarter - 5:19 - Run Middle
Slaton takes the handoff and goes right up the middle. Shows very good speed to get to the LOS. Makes a small cut as he gets there. Gets tackled high, and is running too high, and gets pulled back. Needs to learn to lean forward into those so he falls forward and gets an extra yard or two like we saw from James Davis.

6th Play - 1st Quarter - 4:42 - Pass Block
Slaton helps out on a defender in pass block mode and does a nice job. Pass goes to the left side of the field for a large gain.

7th Play - 1st Quarter - 4:18 - Fake Right
Slaton fakes and runs out into the right flat. Pass is a quick pass to the WR on the right side of the field.

8th Play - 1st Quarter - 3:38 - Pass Route
Slaton is lined up on the wide right side of the field and comes into block at the snap as the QB rushes up the middle. The play is dead before he gets there.

9th Play - 1st Quarter - 1:20 - Run Left
Slaton takes the handoff and runs wide left parallel to the LOS. Defenders blow up field to cut him off, so he turns around and runs right before cutting upfield and getting what he can. Not a bad decision, although I wonder if he could have gone farther back to the right and outrun the defenders.

10th Play - 1st Quarter - 0:45 - Catch Right
Slaton runs to the right flat, catches the pass and turns upfield. He is immediately bottled up and only makes a minimal gain. Marshall is doing a good job of containing him, but he looks out of sorts, often times not even trying to make moves that I've seen him make before.

11th Play - 1st Quarter - 0:01 - Pass Route
Slaton in the slot runs down the right side line to block the defender. QB throws the ball his way, but he never turns around. Obviously some miscommunication.

12th Play - 2nd Quarter - 13:09 - Fake Middle
QB fakes the ball to Slaton, who gets tackled right away, and keeps it running up the middle for a nice gain.

13th Play - 2nd Quarter - 13:01 - Fake Left
Fake left, thrown to the short right

14th Play - 2nd Quarter - 12:19 - Pass Route
Slaton split out wide right runs a pattern downfield as the QB runs on a draw play

15th Play - 2nd Quarter - 11:34 - Catch Left
Slaton swings out to the left flat at the snap; catches a pass thrown slightly behind him; defenders are in on him, but makes a lethargic fake and goes down rather easily; just does seem to have the explosiveness or quick decision making in this game that you would look for

16th Play - 2nd Quarter - 7:54 - Fake Right
Slaton fakes the handoff right and the pass goes to the left flat

17th Play - 2nd Quarter - 5:21 - Run Middle
Slaton takes the handoff and runs into the middle of the line; not much there; seemed like he could have cut outside

18th Play - 2nd Quarter - 4:47 - Reverse Handoff
Slaton takes the handoff going right and then hands/pitches the ball to a WR on the reverse; play goes nowhere

19th Play - 2nd Quarter - 4:25 - Pass Route
Slaton lines up in the left slot and goes out for a pass stright down the field; QB throws to him but the pass is tipped at the LOS and incomplete

20th Play - 3rd Quarter - 14:54 - Run Left
Slaton takes the handoff and runs left/middle; rounds off his cut upfield some but doesn't lose momentum; lowers his head some, but not his shoulders as he hits a group of players; does a decent job of continuing through some defenders to get another yard or two, but he likely could have gained more by lowering his shoulders as well

21st Play - 3rd Quarter - 14:24 - Fake Left
Slaton fakes left and pass blocks, throw goes to right flat; too little time to see blocking technique, but he did face up the defender

22nd Play - 3rd Quarter - 13:12 - Pass Route
Slaton is split wide left, QB thrown quick pass to him and he drops it; might have heard footsteps

23rd Play - 3rd Quarter - 13:07 - Pass Block
Slaton pass blocks for a quick throw to get the first down; faces up his man but the pass is away before he needs to make contact

24th Play - 3rd Quarter - 13:04 - Run Right
Slaton takes the handoff and runs wide right; shows good quickness to get to the LOS and makes a rounded cut inside, gearing down a little bit too much; does a nice job running in traffic here by showing off a spin move to keep his forward momentum going; picks up the first down

25th Play - 3rd Quarter - 12:47 - Fake Middle
Slaton fakes the run up the middle, pass goes short left for a TD

26th Play - 3rd Quarter - 9:24 - Fake Middle
Slaton fakes a run up the middle

27th Play - 3rd Quarter - 9:19 - Pass Route
Slaton is split wide right, run goes up the middle

28th Play - 3rd Quarter - 8:37 - Pass Route
Slaton is split wide right, run goes up the middle

29th Play - 3rd Quarter - 8:25 - Run Middle
Slaton takes the handoff and heads right; rus sort of slowly like he can't decide where the hole should be; runs into traffic in the backfield, turns back inside and suddenly is off like a jet; runs right by a couple of defenders and then lowers his shoulder and runs over another to get the first down; where has that been all game?

30th Play - 3rd Quarter - 8:04 - Run Middle
Slaton takes the handoff and runs straight up the middle through a nice hole; hits a wall of players and tries to push through them without success; probably should have gone around

31st Play - 3rd Quarter - 7:31 - Run Middle
Slaton takes the handoff and goes right up the middle; pretty big hole there; runs into an engaged defender, who slides off the block and takes him down; another case of him not moving laterally when he should have

32nd Play - 3rd Quarter - 7:07 - Pass Route
Slaton lined up wide left as a decoy, QB runs to the right

33rd Play - 3rd Quarter - 6:43 - Run Right
Slaton takes the handoff and heads toward the middle of the line; no hole there so he bounces it outside; makes a nice, subtle breakdown move as he hits the edge without gearing down; this allows him to beat the defender to the corner, but he slows down and turns back in as he gets there and a couple of defenders take him down; looks like he could have made a couple more yards by continuing to the sideline

34th Play - 3rd Quarter - 6:32 - Block
Slaton runs right as a blocker for the QB; does a nice job facing up the defender; gets pushed back a lot by the defender but keeps him occupied as the QB runs by and scores a TD; nice job

35th Play - 3rd Quarter - 6:15 - Run Right
Slaton runs right with the ball; a defender comes upfield, so he cuts toward the line nicely; does a nice job slowing up to allow a blocker to get into place and then really accelerates straight up the field for a nice gain

36th Play - 3rd Quarter - 5:40 - Fake Right
Slaton fakes the run right; pass goes to the left

37th Play - 3rd Quarter - 5:13 - Pass Route
Slaton lined up wide left, runs a pass route; FB goes up the middle

38th Play - 3rd Quarter - 4:37 - Run Middle
Slaton takes the handoff and starts toward the middle of the line; nothing there, so he takes a step or two back and heads to the right; after a couple of steps laterally, he makes a really nice plant and cut move back upfield to get several yards; lowers his shoulders, but it doesn't help

39th Play - 3rd Quarter - 3:56 - Pass Route
Slaton lined up wide left; QB runs up the middle for a nice gain; Slaton gets there at the end of the run but too late to block anyone

40th Play - 3rd Quarter - 3:38 - Run Left - TD
Slaton takes the handoff and runs wide left; after a bit of a stumble, he makes it to the corner easily for a 1 yard TD run

41st Play - 3rd Quarter - 3:09 - Pass Route
Slaton lined up wide left; QB runs to the left; Slaton makes a decent block on the defender and holds him off until the QB is brought down

42nd Play - 3rd Quarter - 3:04 - Run Middle
Slaton runs right up the middle; not much there at all; lowers his shoulders some and gets an extra yard

43rd Play - 4th Quarter - 14:11 - Fake Left
Slaton runs to the left flat for a fake toss; FB goes up the middle

44th Play - 4th Quarter - 13:30 - Fake Middle
Slatons fakes the handoff and runs up the middle; very nice fake; cameraman almost misses the QB running to the left for a nice gain

45th Play - 4th Quarter - 13:13 - Run Right
Slaton takes the handoff and runs wide right; does a nice job running along the "wall" his blockers provide down the line; finally cuts back toward the middle, but gears down too much and gets tackled

46th Play - 4th Quarter - 12:34 - Fake Right
Slaton runs a fake to the right and the pass goes back to the left for a nice gain

47th Play - 4th Quarter - 12:15 - Block
Slaton is out front blocking on a sweep left as the QB carries the ball; he does a decent job engaging his defender, but doesn't put in any extra effort

48th Play - 4th Quarter - 12:11 - Run Middle
Slaton takes the handoff and runs right before cutting it up through a hole in the middle; gears down a little bit to mnake the cut upfield and then accelerates straight ahead; does a simple cross over move at the 2nd level to go right by a defender; gets dragged down from behind a little bit too easily

49th Play - 4th Quarter - 11:50 - Run Middle
Slaton heads up the middle through a decent hole; avoids one defender but the second defender takes him down; he does fall forward this time

50th Play - 4th Quarter - 11:18 - Block
Slaton lead blocks for the QB on a sweep left; encounters some traffic and doesn't do much to try to clear a path for the QB; the QB runs into him as he goes out of bounds

51st Play - 4th Quarter - 9:14 - Run Middle
Slaton runs up the middle after making a nice quick cutback move in the backfield to avoid some traffic; accelerates straight upfield and gets a nice gain; does a decnt job lowering his shoulder to get more yards

52nd Play - 4th Quarter - 8:36 - Run Middle
Slaton takes the handoff and goes up the middle for a couple of yards; there was a nice hole there, but he makes a good cutback move to get a little more after it closes

53rd Play - 4th Quarter - 7:55 - Pass Route
Slaton lines up wide right as the run goes up the middle

54th Play - 4th Quarter - 7:30 - Run Left
Slaton takes the handoff and runs left parallel to the LOS; rounds off the cut as he hits a crease and accelerates nicely; finally gets tackled uphigh after a good gain; really showed the outstanding acceleration on this play

55th Play - 4th Quarter - 5:49 - Run Middle
Takes the handoff and starts to the right before really gearing down to cut upfield; a very slow cut there; doesn't get a chance to accelerate before he needs to make a quick breakdown move; gets him by a defender, but the next defender tackles him

56th Play - 4th Quarter - 5:09 - Run Left
Takes the handoff and runs left through a crease; does a nice job here running in tight spaces as he runs along a wall of traffic and keeps going forward as arms grab him and defenders hit him; goes down after a nice gain; good run

57th Play - 4th Quarter - 4:37 - Run Left - TD
Slaton takes the handoff and goes left through a nice crease in the line; accelerates quickly and runs right by a defender and into the endzone for a 18 yard TD; defender had an angle, but Slaton was just too fast

Final Game Stats:
Slaton had 24 carries for 146 yards and 2 TDs. That's a 6.1 yard per carry average with a long run of 18 yards. He also had 2 catches for 10 yards.

Play Chart Breakdown:
57 Total Plays
24 Runs
14 Pass Routes
3 Blocks (Run Block)
11 Fakes
2 Catches
3 Pass Blocks

Steve Slaton Summary:
Steve Slaton is a very higly regarded running back and has a lot of obvious talent. He has fantastic straight line acceleration, often eliminating an angle that the defender has on him. He does a good job not gearing down when he cuts most of the time. He is really the classic slasher running back. He will run parallel to the LOS, looking for a crease. When he sees it he will accelerate through it as quick as possible. There are two negatives I saw in this game. The first is that Slaton does not move that well laterally. He doesn't really have many moves in the open field and he doesn't make sharp cuts very well. Most of his cuts are rounded, which is nice because he doesn't gear down, but don't allow him to change his direction very much. When he did have to make a sharp cut, he looked awkward.

The other negative was his apparent lack of effort at times. I made an obervation last season while watching him that I wasn't sure he had the heart to succeed in the NFL. That was probably too harsh, but he still looked disinterested at times during this game. The Marshall defense was obviously very pumped up by the home crowd and did a good job, but he still looked like he could have gotten more yards by trying harder at times, or looking for a better lane to run through. On the flip side, he looked very good on his blocking assignments for a star RB. He generally faced up the defender and was agressive in getting to that defender in most cases, sometimes running further down the field after one block looking to make another. He is a bit of an enigma in that respect.

The two possible reasons I can think of for this lack of apparent effort are an attempt to stay healthy, either for later in the season or the NFL. Marshall was a winnable game so maybe he is trying to save himself some. The other reason could be that his vision is just average. It could be that when he runs into the traffic, he just doesn't see some of the holes or creases that look obvious from afar. Let's hope that is not the case.

In conclusion, I think that Slaton will be a successful NFL RB, but I don't think he'll be a superstar. He likely won't have such wide open lanes in the NFL and will need to move better laterally to get through the second level, although his acceleration will be impressive when he does find that crease. I think the best situation for him would be to play along side Vince Young in Tennessee. That would be a difficult offense to stop if you had Vince either give or fake the ball to Slaton and roll the opposite way.

Rating System: Needs to pack on some pounds, at 190 he falls into the Small Back 3 rating. By putting on 10 pounds of muscle for the NFL he can fall into the Small Back 2B rating.