Elijah Mitchell NFL Draft 2021: Scouting Report for San Francisco 49ers RB

HEIGHT: 5'10 1/4"

WEIGHT: 201 lbs

POSITIVES

—Above-average size with a strider running style with above-average acceleration and good long speed. Can get up on the second level in a hurry when given the space.

—Runs hard and gets north quickly. Not a ton of dancing in his game. Makes up his mind and gets going.

—Above-average hands out of the backfield.

—Has the long speed to take any place the distance. Can punish defenders taking the wrong angle.

—Able to pop his way through tight holes when he sees daylight and run behind his pads when anticipating contact.

NEGATIVES

—Upright and straight-line runner. Runs with a narrow base that can knock him off balance upon contact.

—Stiff hips and below-average change of direction ability. His goal is to bounce and outrace everyone. Struggles to make defenders due to his lack of suddenness and stop-start ability after cutting. Needs a few steps to get back up to gear.

—One-speed runner that accelerates to the second level but rarely varies his tempo to set up blocks or keep defenders off-balanced.

2020 STATISTICS

10 G, 141 carries, 878 yards, 6.2 avg., 8 TD, 16 rec., 153 yards

OVERALL

Elijah Mitchell is an adequate-sized RB who does his best work when he has a bit of a runway before him that allows him to get downhill in a hurry to utilize his top-end speed. Mitchell plays tough but has a narrow base and just average foot quickness to make defenders miss or anticipate cuts at the second level. His vision is adequate, but he does try to bounce runs to utilize his speed and lacks the ability to create when running in between the tackles.

Mitchell is a one-speed runner that is more consistently efficient than explosive, but does have good long speed and is a threat to take plays the distance, he just requires a bit of runway and space to take advantage of it.

Overall, Mitchell does not truly play to his athletic testing but does show enough long speed to be considered a home run threat and someone that could be efficient in a zone-heavy scheme. He plays with some toughness and has enough size that he could be a candidate for special teams and a limited touch role in a RB room, but his just-average ability to run between the tackles could limit the upside.

GRADE: 6.7/10 (Round 6)

OVERALL RANK: 221/300

POSITION RANK: RB16

PRO COMPARISON: George Atkinson III 

Written by B/R NFL Scout Nate Tice