Johnathan Franklin is an intriguing prospect. He reminds me a bit of Stepfan Taylor (RB, Stanford) in the fact that he doesn’t stand out as doing one thing great, but also doesn’t have a huge hole in his game. The UCLA product tallied nearly 5,000 total yards and 34 touchdowns in his four-year collegiate career. This type of production really cannot be discounted, especially playing in a major conference.
Lets take a look at eDraft’s scouting report on the talented young running back.
| Ht | Wt | Class | Ranking | Projection |
| 5'10" | 198 | Senior | 75 | Late second, early third |
Strengths
Field Speed: Franklin is a threat to take it the distance every single time that he touches the ball. He gets to his second gear in relatively short order, which causes a major issue for opposing defenses on the outside. He is quick off the line and possesses that first gear that you rarely see from all-around running backs entering the draft.
Running Ability: Franklin runs with a low center of gravity, which makes him incredibly hard to bring down for a smallish back. You will notice him throwing bigger defensive players back at the point of contact because of his pad level. In addition, Franklin’s lower-body strength and constantly churning legs makes him a solid runner between the hashes.
Receiving Ability: While Franklin only caught 25 total passes in his first three seasons, a lot of that had to do with lackluster quarterback play. He rebounded with 33 receptions for 323 yards and three scores as a senior in 2012, as Brett Hundley gave UCLA a more consistent quarterback. Franklin has soft hands, can run tight routes and possesses solid field vision. He will be a receiving threat at the next level.
Weaknesses
Pure Strength: While Franklin’s low center of gravity does make him stronger than most people think, he will not be a great short-yardage back in the NFL. In addition, you will not see him carry the pile between the hashes. He is a much more productive running back on the outside and in space.
Pass Protection: Terrible, just terrible. This is probably Franklin’s biggest shortcoming and it is something that could keep him from being a three-down running back at the next level. He struggles more than any running back in this draft class at pass protection. While willing to stick his neck in there, Franklin just doesn’t possess the technique or strength to take on pass rushers. He will get thrown back on a consistent basis and remains too upright to be counted on here.
Bottom Line
I expect Franklin to go somewhere in the third round. He has some of the best running ability in the entire draft. A combination of field vision, speed, receiving ability and underrated strength leads me to believe that Franklin will surprise a great deal of people at the next level. He reminds me of David Wilson, who the New York Giants drafted in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft.