Tyjae Spears  |  Tulane  5’10″ 201 lbs.  |  06/15/2001 (21)

Tyjae Spears was drafted by the Tennessee Titans, becoming the fifth Running Back and 81st overall player in the 2023 NFL Draft.

COLLEGE PRODUCTION

Tyjae Spears showed flashes as a freshman, but his sophomore season was cut short due to an ACL tear that ended his season after just 3 games. Spears returned with a solid, efficient junior season, averaging almost 6.7 yards per carry and scoring 7 touchdowns. Spears’ real breakout, however, was in 2022, when he posted an impressive line of 1,581 rushing yards and 21 total touchdowns, along with 22 receptions for 256 receiving yards.

At a glance, Spears’ basic analytical profile isn’t pretty. He was a late breakout, and not an early declare. Additionally, Spears’ G5 competition leads his 73rd percentile dominator rating to be a bit lackluster as well. Overall, Spears was a respectable producer throughout his college career and capped it off with a stellar senior season. However, his analytical profile can’t be considered a strength due to missing some of the key indicators to projecting NFL success.

FILM

Spears is an incredibly shifty and elusive runner, which pairs nicely with his overall quickness and solid receiving ability. He has great wiggle at the line of scrimmage and is extremely explosive through holes. He has the vision necessary to identify first and second cuts and does so fairly consistently. Spears’ contact balance is solid as well, effectively avoiding arm tackles on a consistent basis and showing a decent ability to break tackles in general at the college level. He’s a good receiver who runs crisp routes and has average hands for the position and should receive a decent amount of volume in the league. 

Spears’ pure power is a tad underrated, although it’s not a strength for him. He is solid between the tackles and finishes runs moving forward consistently, which we like to see. He profiles on film as a solid, well-rounded 3-down back, however, I don’t see this being his role at the NFL level. I project him similarly to Tony Pollard, who is also an underrated in-between-the-tackles runner but gets used more as an elusive back with his team attempting to get him out in space. This is where Spears is truly dangerous, as his lateral agility is borderline elite and he has the long speed to turn his jukes into chunk plays. 

Some concerns for Spears include his durability, which brings into question the longevity of his explosive running style. Additionally, he has struggled with ball security at times, which is dangerous for any rookie running back hoping to carve out a role. Overall, his tape is very strong. He shows many good traits, such as his overall juice as well as good vision and running instinct, and has a potential 3-down profile.

ATHLETIC TESTING

Spears participated in a few NFL Combine activities, posting an impressive 39-inch vertical and a 10’5” broad jump. Spears did not run the 40-yard dash or the 20-yard shuttle, so we do not have a speed score for his athletic testing. These numbers don’t add much to Spears’ profile as an NFL prospect or as a dynasty prospect.

DRAFT ANALYSIS

Spears was selected with the 81st overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft by the Tennessee Titans.

This made Spears the fifth running back off the board, right in the middle of the third round of the draft. This was just about best-case scenario draft capital for Tyjae, who has a lengthy injury history and a good amount of analytical flaws in his profile. He was one of the few survivors of the Day 3 purge that wiped out many of our favorite running back prospects.

Spears obviously finds himself comfortably fighting for 2nd on the depth chart with Darrynton Evans, competing for the backup role to perennial rushing leader Derrick Henry. Obviously, this isn’t an ideal situation – however, there is some cause for optimism. Henry has been plagued by injury over recent seasons, meaning an opportunity could present itself as soon as the 2023 season for Spears to spend time in a featured role. Additionally, Spears’ play style is quite different from Henry, so there’s a chance he’s employed in a more complimentary role right away. Overall, the landing spot isn’t ideal, but there aren’t a ton of ideal options to begin with.

Draft Analysis Grade: Average

FANTASY INSIGHTS

Spears slots in at my RB6 slot in this year’s rookie class. Pre-draft, Spears was closer to the 10-14 range, however, his being one of the few backs to receive top-100 draft capital moves the needle on him considerably. Admittedly, I expect this ranking to taper off a bit in the come-down of draft season, but for now, he’s a good target in the back end of the 2nd round of your rookie drafts. I wouldn’t expect much out of Spears in 2023, as additionally, the Tennessee offense is something I’m actively avoiding this off-season. However, we could see a relationship sometime in the future similar to the Ezekiel Elliott–Tony Pollard duo from 2022, where Spears’ home run ability finds equal use alongside Derrick Henry’s power and consistency. Spears is worth a shot at the end of the 2nd and is a good hold for 2023.

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