Saquon Barkley Jumps to No. 1 on Todd McShay's 2018 NFL Draft Top 32 Rankings

Saquon Barkley is the best player in the 2018 NFL draft—at least according to the latest rankings ESPN's Todd McShay released Monday.

The Penn State running back sits first overall in McShay's Top 32 prospect list, moving up one spot from his ranking in December.

USC quarterback Sam Darnold, who was third in December, is now second, leaping ahead of UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen, McShay's top overall player a month ago.

During his junior season, Barkley rushed for 1,271 yards and 18 touchdowns, adding another 632 yards and three scores on 54 receptions. He finished his career as Penn State's all-time leader in rushing touchdowns (43) and second behind Evan Royster on the school's rushing list (3,843).

The all-purpose star is widely expected to be a top-five pick in April, perhaps even as high as No. 2 to the New York Giants. Roc Nation Sports signed on to represent him earlier this month.

"It was a really easy decision," Barkley said of signing with the company, per Darren Rovell of ESPN.com. "A lot of people came around my way, but they were focused on me, and they did a great job at selling my family on setting me up for life, bringing value outside of football. I felt like it was harder for other agencies to pitch that family feel when they were working with 30 or 40 guys."

Running backs saw a brief trend of falling out of favor on draft day, but Ezekiel Elliott and Leonard Fournette have each been selected fourth overall the past two seasons. The Cleveland Browns hold the No. 1 and No. 4 picks this year and could theoretically land both Darnold (or Rosen) and Barkley, giving them the top two players in this class.

No running back has gone higher than No. 4 since the Browns selected Trent Richardson third overall in 2012.