STRENGTHS
Zack reminds me a lot of a former Patriots third-down back Kevin Falk. He is smart and one of the best pass blocking, running backs in this draft. He shows on film the good lateral agility to make players miss and has the hands out of the backfield to be a dependable option when his quarterback is in duress or on third and long downs. He is a tough runner and doesn’t like to be taken down with the first tackle. He does a good job being patient, waiting for his blockers and following them with good vision and balance to make it through the gaps and gain the needed yardage. Zack has the vision, to make players miss and find those small holes through the line that most running backs with more power don’t see. His high football IQ is what he brings with him to the next level along with his tough running style not to be taken down by just one player.
CONCERNS
Zack has solid lateral agility but he lacks the lateral explosion out of his cuts to make yards on his own. He also runs high so unless he is in a spread offense he will struggle to gain yards through the tackles on third and short downs. Zack is what I call a scooter, he scoots along in open space looking for his blocks and although he will gain yards in chunks, unless he is inside the fifty-yard line he is not going to beat anyone to the end zone.
BOTTOM LINE 3.56
As I stated before, Zack reminds me a lot of former Patriots third-down back Kevin Falk because of his high football IQ, and pass blocking skills. Zack sees the blitz and gets to his blocks quickly once the ball is snapped. He also does an excellent job chipping and then going out to get the check down pass. He is fluid catching the ball so he can be used for more than just check downs. When he does get the ball in the open field he is tough to bring down and will gain the needed yards to make first downs. In my opinion, Zack could be a three-down back in the right system but his talents and impact for the next level, lie in him being a very productive third-down back just like Kevin Faulk was.
