The long wait for the first running back to be drafted finally came to an end.
The Carolina Panthers traded up six spots to select Texas running back Jonathon Brooks with the 46th pick in the NFL draft Friday night, marking the second-latest selection for the first running back chosen.
Brooks might have been chosen earlier, but he suffered a torn ACL late in the season after rushing for 1,139 yards in 11 games.
The only draft that saw a longer wait for a running back occurred in 2014. Bishop Sankey was the first running back taken when he was selected 54th by Tennessee that year.
The only other time in the common draft era starting in 1967 when no running backs were chosen in the first round came two years ago when Breece Hall was the first taken at No. 36 by the New York Jets.
“I think for us, we value the running backs and we value the running game,” Panthers general manager Dan Morgan said. “I think to have a guy like Jonathon Brooks, he was a guy we loved and identified. … They are valuable to us because we are going to be running the ball.”
There was a belief that the first running back chosen could start a trend at the position, with several other top-backs expected to be selected in the second and third rounds of the draft.
But it took 20 more picks before the next running back was chosen, with Florida State’s Trey Benson going to Arizona with the second pick in the third round.
