Zack Moss: 2020 Dynasty Rookie Profile
Position: RB
School: Utah
Class: Senior
Date of Birth: December 15, 1997
Height: 5-9 Weight: 223lbs
Athletic Testing
40-Time: 4.65
Speed Score: 95.4 (46th-percentile)
Bench Press: 19 (42nd-percentile)
SPARQ-x: 104.7 (29th-percentile)
Bio
Zack Moss, cousin of former NFL wide receivers Santana Moss and Sinorice Moss, played his first three years of high school football at Mater Academy Charter in Florida before transferring to Hallandale High School for his senior year. Moss rushed for 1,098 yards and 17 touchdowns on 145 carries and caught 25 passes for 425 yards and four touchdowns in his one season at Hallandale. After originally committing to the University of Miami, following in the footsteps of his older cousins, Moss opted to de-commit due to coaching changes and sign-on at Utah.
See Where Zack Moss Lands In Our 2020 Dynasty Rookie Rankings
Moss played in 10 games (three starts) as a true freshman, taking 84 carries for 382 yards (4.5 YPC) and two touchdowns. He missed three games due to injury. As a sophomore, Moss led the team with 1,173 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on 214 carries (5.5 YPC) in 13 games (12 starts). He added 29 receptions for 243 yards. A knee injury suffered in practice, and then aggravated at home, cut his junior season short. He still managed to earn second-team All-Pac-12 honors and rush for 1,092 yards and 11 touchdowns on 179 carries (6.1 YPC). He caught just eight passes for 50 yards and a score. Moss had surgery to repair his meniscus injury which ultimately led to his decision to return to school for his senior year.
The decision paid off, as he rushed 235 times for 1,416 yards (6.0 YPC) and 15 touchdowns with 28 receptions, 388 receiving yards and two scores. He became the first player in Utah history with three 1,000-yard seasons and set school records for career carries (712), career rushing yards (4,167), career 100-yard rushing games (18), career rushing touchdowns (38), career all-purpose plays (778), and career total touchdowns (41). He also tied the records for career 200-yard rushing games with two and single-season rushing touchdowns with 15 in 2019.
Moss tested with below-average athleticism at the NFL Combine with a 4.65 40-yard dash, translating to a 95.4 (46th-percentile) Speed Score.
College Stats
Zack Moss College Stats Courtesy of sports-reference.com
Positives
+35.7 (82nd-percentile) Dominator
+6.1 (73rd-percentile) YPC
+9.0-percent (68th-percentile) Target Share; 12-percent reception share
+19.7 (53rd-percentile, sophomore season) Breakout Age
+14.5 yards after catch per reception
+Above average in pass protection
+Ideal RB1 size
+4.45 yards after contact per attempt
+89 forced missed tackles
+21 carries of 15+ yards
+2.36 yards per route
+1.99 yards per team play
Negatives
-Slow; 4.65 40-time; 95.4 (46th-percentile) Speed Score
-Below average athleticism
-Durability concerns
-Not a creative runner
-Older prospect; Senior
-Not an explosive threat
-Minimal elusiveness in space
-Not a dynamic receiver
Highlight Reel
Best Comparable Player (PlayerProfiler): Montee Ball
NFL Draft Projection: Day Two
The NFL average Speed Score among RBs is 98.25.
This metric matters for RBs and is highly predictive.
13 RBs in the 2020 class scored above the 98.25 threshold as seen in the image:
(2/3) pic.twitter.com/qXDnBGlfbl
— Alex Johnson (@a_johnsonFF) March 14, 2020
Bottom Line:
The reason why the film-scout community loves Moss so much is for his tackle-breaking ability. And give him credit, Moss was a tackle-breaking machine at Utah. But let’s be real, how many future lawyers and car salesmen are really bringing down a 223-pound bowling ball? Not many. The bottom line is he’s slow, and slow running backs with low speed scores don’t hit at the NFL level at a high rate. Moss fits into the top-10 running backs in this class, but barely. He will likely see Day Two draft capital which will help his dynasty value especially if he lands in a situation that will lend him an opportunity to carve out an early role, a la David Montgomery in 2019. But like Montgomery, it will serve dynasty gamers well to sell high at first chance.
Resources: DLF, PlayerProfiler, NFL.com, PFF
