Rookie Alex Collins’ game based on extremely quick feet
By Keith Myers
Seattle’s Seahawks rookie Alex Collins has some incredibly quick feet, and it is that trait that’ll give him a chance to be a good NFL running back.
The Seattle Seahawks surprised a lot of people when they drafted running back Alex Collins out of Arkansas. The Seahawks already have their feature back in Thomas Rawls, and they’d drafted their third-down specialist back in Round 3. This was perhaps a luxury pick, but one that could pay huge dividends for Seattle in the very near future.
The first thing that jumps out when watching Collins’ tape is that his feet are insanely fast. He take these short little choppy steps, but his feet move so fast that he still has great speed.
His running style is unique, but it also reminds me of Marshawn Lynch. Lynch never ran in a straight line. His movements were sudden, extreme and unpredictable. His combination of incredible balance as massive power is what made him great.
Collins has a similar suddenness in his running style. Those quick, choppy steps mean he can cut and change direction extremely quickly.
Collins uses that ability to make sure he is never squared up by a defender. He has a knack for cutting away from the big hit, and thus always falling forward for extra yards.
These traits make them a very good runner between the tackles. It is easy to see why the Seahawks like Collins so much.
The downside is that Collins’ running style doesn’t work as well outside the tackles. There are times that he needs to simply outrun the defender to the corner, and he lacks that extra gear to get there.
Instead, he’ll try and reset and make the containment defender miss. This gives the pursuit a chance to catch up to the play.
That’s a minor complaint though. The Seahawks are great at playing to the strengths of their players. Lynch had a similar weakness, so they ran inside zone run with him all game. Rawls was better on the outside, so they unleashed the zone-stretch game when he was on the field. It just means that Collin’s playbook will be similar to the Lynch’s.
Collins still has a lot to prove before he’ll earn playing time with the Seahawks, but his quick feet give him a good chance to carve out a role for the Seahawks.