Todd Gurley’s meteoric rise came at just the right time

But just a couple weeks ago that didn’t seem like a remote possibility. There were debates that pitted Gurley against Wisconsin’s Melvin Gordon for the title of top running back in the 2015 NFL Draft class and both were merely considered possibilities for the top 20.

Now Gurley is considered a virtual certainty for the first 20 picks and the clear-cut top back in the class ahead of Gordon. So what changed? Gurley, who tore his ACL late in the 2014 season, was given a clean bill health at the medical rechecks with less than two weeks before Day 1 of the draft.

Just a few days later, Gurley launched to No. 6 in Todd McShay’s mock draft. That matches Gurley’s placement in Dan Kadar’s rankings of the top 300 prospects in the draft class.

While Gurley going that early would still be somewhat surprising, it would now be equally surprising if he slips into the latter half of the first round.

After shying away from running backs in the next two drafts, teams evidently feel that the blend of size, speed and strength possessed by both Gurley and Gordon warrant a return to the first round for running backs.