The 2023 NFL Draft is a star-studded group that will produce the next batch of fantasy football darlings and difference-makers in the standings. We know the big names expected to go in the first round, like Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs. However, we’re diving in deeper to find those valuable Day 3 gems that can prove to be steals.
The top running back sleepers in the 2023 NFL Draft are led by some players who either broke out late in their careers or had early success and faded as the situation around them got worse. No two players’ path is identical. But if these RB sleepers land in the right spot, they can be productive studs for their NFL team.
Who Are the Dreamiest RB Sleepers in the 2023 NFL Draft?
Each of these players is no higher than the 160th overall player on the PFN Consensus Big Board. Expect to hear their names to be called late in the draft on Day 3 or become undrafted free agents.
Xazavian Valladay, Arizona State
A player who produced five seasons averaging at least 5.6 yards per touch and three years with 1,063+ rushing yards shouldn’t be this far under the radar. Yet, former Wyoming and Arizona State running back Xazavian Valladay was a relative unknown entering the 2023 Shrine Bowl. When watching the Shrine Bowl practices, Valladay was noticeably comfortable in space as a pass catcher, boosting his stock.
His transfer from Wyoming to Arizona State proved to be the right decision. Valladay produced 1,192 yards and a whopping 16 scores on the ground as a senior. But it’s his gift as a receiver that will earn him a role for a good offense.
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Valladay increased his reception total in each season of his career, peaking with 37 catches for 289 yards and two scores in 2022. His career production has been efficient and stellar from Day 1, including the COVID-shortened 2020 season, where he finished with 655 total yards in five games.
Though he has a leaner, tall frame that typically doesn’t look natural at running back, Valladay can be a plug-and-play contributor for an inside zone team. The Chargers, Bills, and Browns would be fitting Day 3 landing spots.
Deneric Prince, Tulsa
Standing just under 6’0″ and 216 pounds, Deneric Prince is a powerful package who happens to also have 4.41 speed. Prince is coming off an impressive Combine performance that solidified his ability to be an impactful contributor on a roster. His three-year career at Tulsa was good, but Prince never saw a massive number of touches.
Reaching career highs with 135 total touches, 813 yards, and six touchdowns in 2022, the big question with Prince is whether he can handle a full workload. He played in eight games last year, totaling 451 of his rushing yards against Temple and USF. With 26 games played over three years, Prince’s lack of durability will likely limit his role to being a backup.
That doesn’t mean Prince can’t be a super sub, though. He has good power and toughness through contact, so a power scheme that gets him downhill in a hurry will maximize his skill set. The Ravens, Steelers, and Cardinals are intriguing fits.
Evan Hull, Northwestern
There are times when a Combine performance makes you go back to the tape and re-evaluate what you saw. For Evan Hull, producing a 4.47 40-yard dash, a 37″ vertical jump, and a 6.9 second three-cone time at 209 pounds may have given him an unexpected NFL shot. Considering he had only three scholarship offers for football out of high school, Hull has continued to be an underdog.
Hull spoke about his unlikely path to this point at the NFL Scouting Combine, noting, “I would say [playing college football] became a possibility toward [sic] midway through high school.” After experiencing success early in his career, averaging 6.2 yards per carry as a freshman and 8.4 yards in 2020, then breaking the 1,000-yard mark in 2021, Hull could’ve declared for the draft last year.
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Instead, his rushing production dipped as the Wildcats’ offensive line deteriorated. He averaged only 4.1 yards per carry in 2022 but became a monstrous receiving threat, totaling 546 yards on 55 receptions. Hull then focused on improving his pass-protection skills after receiving a Senior Bowl invite this offseason.
Hull has a bulky build and led all running backs at the Senior Bowl by running 19.78 miles per hour in practices. His all-around game makes him a potential steal for teams that can give him more than just goal-line touches.
Chase Brown, Illinois
It shouldn’t be a surprising statement that someone who totaled 1,643 rushing yards in 2022 alone is a good player. Illinois’ Chase Brown broke out in 2021 with 1,005 yards and five scores, averaging 5.9 yards per carry. His signature moment came against Penn State, where he carried the ball 33 times for 223 yards.
That performance led to Illinois head coach Bret Bielema praising how Brown prepares his body to carry the rock. “He’s put a huge amount of emphasis on the makeup of his body. How he trains, how he recovers…to keep [his body] in shape.”
That effort paid off on the field and also at the NFL Scouting Combine. Brown was arguably the best athlete at his position, running a 4.43 40 at 209 pounds, leaping 40″ in his vertical jump, and a whopping 127″ in the broad jump.
Along with elite production, Brown is an elite athlete. The toughest thing with him is that he rarely had the runway at Illinois to show that ability while in space, and he was often a grinder.
A sharp team should take Brown early on Day 3. He has the physical profile that led to Breece Hall being a second-round pick and also compares favorably to another Day 2 pick in Rachaad White.
Tiyon Evans, Louisville
After transferring from Tennessee to Louisville for the 2022 season, Tiyon Evans had almost the exact same stat line from his previous season. In 2021, Evans ran the ball 81 times for 525 yards and six touchdowns. He added four receptions for 74 yards and one score. He had one more carry for the same amount of yards and scores in 2022 but only added 13 receiving yards on six receptions.
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Evans is clearly a talented player with that type of efficiency in a limited role and in two different situations. There’s not much known about him because he dealt with an ankle injury throughout 2022 and suffered another ankle injury at Tennessee shortly after winning the starting job.
Evans’ Combine performance was one that has evaluators interested as well. At 5’9 5/8″ and 225 pounds, he ran a 4.52 40-yard dash. He’s a linear athlete, much like Gus Edwards, so it’s easy to see him finding a role for the right offense that can get him downhill in a hurry.