Redskins 2020 NFL Draft meeting tracker: Utah RB Zack Moss

The Washington Redskins have met with quite a few prospects in the lead up to the 2020 NFL Draft. Here’s a look at one that they met with recently, Utah running back Zack Moss.

With prospect visits not happening due to the coronavirus pandemic, it’s a bit harder to track exactly which prospects the Washington Redskins are meeting with. The team will be holding virtual meetings via FaceTime, as other teams have done so far, but not all of those visits will be public knowledge. Thus, it will make it a bit harder to see all of the prospects that the ‘Skins are hosting on what would normally be their “Top 30” visits.

But over the course of the draft process, the Redskins have met with quite a few prospects. Whether at the NFL Combine, Senior Bowl, or the East-West Shrine Game, they’ve done their due diligence on a number of players.

So, ahead of the 2020 NFL Draft, we’ll get you the information you need to know on the players that the Redskins have met with. And we’ll get things started by taking a look at Utah running back Zack Moss.

RB Zack Moss, Utah

Class: Senior

2019 Stats: 235 carries, 1,416 rushing yards, 15 rushing touchdowns, 28 catches, 388 receiving yards, two receiving touchdowns

When did the Redskins meet with Moss?: Video meeting, per ESPN’s John Keim.

About Moss: Zack Moss was a four-year contributor for the Utah Utes and a three-year starter in the backfield. At 5-foot-9, 223 pounds, Moss was a powerful and productive runner who averaged 5.7 yards per carry during his career and had three seasons with at least 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns.

On tape, Moss shows the ability to consistently break tackles in the backfield and in space. He’s a powerful runner with good play strength and it’s hard to bring him down on first contact. He has a variety of moves to escape contact including stiff arms and spin moves that he utilizes well at the line of scrimmage and even further down the field. Moss has great patience and good vision that affords him the opportunity to find creases in the defense and make the cut necessary to hit the hole. He has enough burst to get into space rather quickly when he turns up the jets, but his top gear is merely decent.

In pass protection, Moss excels, using his strength to consistently chip pass rushers when he releases as a receiver and he can hold up just fine on his own as well. That should afford him a chance to be a solid three-down back at the next level.

There are some issues with Moss. As mentioned, his speed is merely decent at best, and the 4.65 40-yard dash he clocked at the combine won’t do a lot to comfort the teams that are worried about that. Additionally, Moss had some injury concerns in college. He battled toe, knee, hand, and shoulder injuries during his four years at Utah and the knee injury was the most baffling.

Moss actually tore his meniscus one night during his junior year while getting into bed and had to get surgery on the ailment. It could’ve just been a freak injury that was mostly football-related but gave out randomly, but it’s still an odd story and one that teams likely would want more information about in pre-draft medical checks. With those not happening, Moss could slide a bit if teams are concerned about the health of his knee even despite his strong senior season.

Overall: Moss certainly is a good running back prospect and it’s possible that he could be a Day 2 pick. If, however, he falls due to the concerns about his knee and speed, he could be an option for the Redskins on Day 3. That said, the Redskins have bigger holes to fill than running back given that they already have Adrian Peterson, Derrius Guice, Bryce Love, Peyton Barber, and J.D. McKissic at the position. So, they may be better served letting someone else take a chance on Moss.