D.J. Jones
Denison High School (TX)
6’0″ 210 pounds
Running Back
Status: Undecided
Scouts, Inc. Grade: 78
On the Trail
Scouts, Inc. Evaluation
Jones doesn’t wow you on film with great speed or explosive power, but he simply produces and move the chains with his downhill strength and deceptive quicks through the hole. Has a great frame and body composition when projecting as a college back. Is tall but still compact with well-layered bulk and thickness. Has a solid base and runs with very good shoulder lean through traffic. Does need to consistently watch his pad level though. Hits the hole with patience and displays deceptively good feet and sound vision finding and sliding through the small creases. Can pick and dart and decisively hit the cutback. Shows he can bounce it laterally when needed as well but excels at planting and accelerating downhill. Flashes good burst and some suddenness when slicing through the second level. Shows good top-end speed and a sneaky extra gear but is not going to break away from faster defensive backs at the next level or elude them in space. We project the majority of his yards will come after contact. Even when he doesn’t generate good momentum through the hole, he still breaks a lot of initial contact and does not go down easily. Knows when to lower the shoulder, coil up and keep his legs driving. Runs through and bounces off a lot tackles with his strong base, leg drive and consistent second efforts. The type of back who will frustrate and wear down a defense with his subtle cuts to make you miss and consistently strong running effort. Does need to work on eliminating unnecessary lateral cuts and squaring up quicker as a one-cut and go guy, but Jones is the type of back coveted to carry the load at the next level. He has good hands out the backfield and can pass block, which adds to his upside.
