Kaelon Black - San Francisco 49ers

[LIHoosier]

Joining CJ and Kurtis out west

 

[Aaron]

I love IU as much as anyone but that is a horrible pick in third round. He would still be there in the sixth round for 49ers if they like him and could make a nice complimentary back with his grittiness and ability to grind for yards.

However, the third round is for franchise backs and Black is not that with his lack of speed. Not a knock on him and think could have a nice pro career and one of my favorite players. Just not a primary NFL franchise back with his somewhat slower wheels. 

[tyappleg]

54 minutes ago, Aaron said:

I love IU as much as anyone but that is a horrible pick in third round. He would still be there in the sixth round for 49ers if they like him and could make a nice complimentary back with his grittiness and ability to grind for yards.

However, the third round is for franchise backs and Black is not that with his lack of speed. Not a knock on him and think could have a nice pro career and one of my favorite players. Just not a primary NFL franchise back with his somewhat slower wheels. 

While it did feel a bit early.  A lot of teams liked him, especially after his performance at the senior bowl. He was a huge riser on draft boards post CFP and Senior Bowl.  My guess is he was going Round 4 to somebody, so SF liked him enough to pull the trigger at the end of the 3rd. 

[Home Jersey]

He is gonna surprise some people 

[BannerVille]

I didn't expect it quite this early, but this is a great landing spot.  He will get some run this season.

[Stuhoo]

3 hours ago, Aaron said:

I love IU as much as anyone but that is a horrible pick in third round. He would still be there in the sixth round for 49ers if they like him and could make a nice complimentary back with his grittiness and ability to grind for yards.

However, the third round is for franchise backs and Black is not that with his lack of speed. Not a knock on him and think could have a nice pro career and one of my favorite players. Just not a primary NFL franchise back with his somewhat slower wheels. 

Speed you say? Kaelon ran a 4.45 40 at his pro day. That’s better than average for a combine wr, nevermind a rb.

 

The average 40-yard dash time for an NFL running back at the combine is generally between 4.49 and 4.59 seconds. Elite running backs often clock in under 4.4 seconds, while a time of 4.5–4.6 seconds is considered solid for the position. 

NFL.com +4

 

 

[JSHoosier]

6 hours ago, Aaron said:

I love IU as much as anyone but that is a horrible pick in third round. He would still be there in the sixth round for 49ers if they like him and could make a nice complimentary back with his grittiness and ability to grind for yards.

However, the third round is for franchise backs and Black is not that with his lack of speed. Not a knock on him and think could have a nice pro career and one of my favorite players. Just not a primary NFL franchise back with his somewhat slower wheels. 

He ran a 4.45 40, that's not slow. Skattebo ran a 4.65 at his pro day.

[BtownStrength]

I am not saying Kaelon is "slow" at all. But lets remember to compare apples to apples. Combine uses a laser system to determine end time 40. As far as I'm aware (pls correct me if I'm wrong), pro days are usually hand clocked by scouts. We can compare Black's pro day to other pro days, but comparing to combine results introduces an element of human error. Hand clocked pro day times are know to be slightly faster, but that's anecdotal and sadly I dont have the mental bandwidth at 4:30 AM to research. 

[IU5355]

8 hours ago, Aaron said:

I love IU as much as anyone but that is a horrible pick in third round. He would still be there in the sixth round for 49ers if they like him and could make a nice complimentary back with his grittiness and ability to grind for yards.

However, the third round is for franchise backs and Black is not that with his lack of speed. Not a knock on him and think could have a nice pro career and one of my favorite players. Just not a primary NFL franchise back with his somewhat slower wheels. 

Obviously the 49ers evaluators and scouts disagree with you. You know the guys who do this every day. Good pickup, congrats Kaelon. 

[rayl456]

25 minutes ago, IU5355 said:

Obviously the 49ers evaluators and scouts disagree with you. You know the guys who do this every day. Good pickup, congrats Kaelon. 

This 100%

[Hovadipo]

Doubt the Niners are getting tricked into thinking they just drafted a burner here. If that’s what we’re using to call this a horrible pick, then give me a break. They drafted a back that’s strong as an ox with good vision, and is a really good pass protector. “Would still be there in the 6th round” lol good grief. 

If you’d like to see a horrible 49ers draft pick, take a look at De’Zhaun Stribling at 33. 

[rayl456]

9 hours ago, Aaron said:

I love IU as much as anyone but that is a horrible pick in third round. He would still be there in the sixth round for 49ers if they like him and could make a nice complimentary back with his grittiness and ability to grind for yards.

However, the third round is for franchise backs and Black is not that with his lack of speed. Not a knock on him and think could have a nice pro career and one of my favorite players. Just not a primary NFL franchise back with his somewhat slower wheels. 

Wonder what Coach Cignetti’s response would be to your post/evaluation.  LOL

[Brass Cannon]

I don’t think Black was slow.  More a reflection of the style of ball we played which was we are gonna run it right at you and push through the defense till we find space. Thats going to be slower in game than being fancy and looking for space from the get go. Plenty of times he found space and just sped through though 

[Stuhoo]

3 hours ago, BtownStrength said:

I am not saying Kaelon is "slow" at all. But lets remember to compare apples to apples. Combine uses a laser system to determine end time 40. As far as I'm aware (pls correct me if I'm wrong), pro days are usually hand clocked by scouts. We can compare Black's pro day to other pro days, but comparing to combine results introduces an element of human error. Hand clocked pro day times are know to be slightly faster, but that's anecdotal and sadly I dont have the mental bandwidth at 4:30 AM to research. 

Sarratt ran a 4.72 at his pro day. 1st rounder Coop ran a 4.42. As a WR.

Anyone have any actual evidence that Kaelon isn’t fast? Because I’m citing a timed 4.45 that says he is.

[tyappleg]

25 minutes ago, Stuhoo said:

Sarratt ran a 4.72 at his pro day. 1st rounder Coop ran a 4.42. As a WR.

Anyone have any actual evidence that Kaelon isn’t fast? Because I’m citing a timed 4.45 that says he is.

Sarratt's NFL verified 40 time was 4.53

[Stuhoo]

3 minutes ago, tyappleg said:

Sarratt's NFL verified 40 time was 4.53

My bad! 

[Aaron]

Look everyone is entitled to disagree and maybe I will be wrong and you all will be right. Only time will tell.

Scouting is like a weather forecast that is a pretty good guide but often not perfect. This was definitely a case of drafting someone way higher than any so called expert (aka meteorologist in weather field) thought.

As a fan with the ability to be an amateur scout due to a brief job in past, i can tell you I see all the red flags that the scouts do. Doesn’t mean anyone is right and Black can absolutely be the ‘sunny’ pick on the ‘rainy’ day forecast as happens a lot when teams ignore the consensus.

I am just trying to provide realism without the rose colored fan glasses. Doesn’t mean I am right and everyone else is wrong.

I really hope Black is still in the NFL in five years but my ‘amateur expert’ opinion tells me Mendoza, Cooper, Ponds, Sarratt, and Fisher will be the ones around in five years. As with everything above, could be very wrong here.

I wish all our Hoosiers luck in the NFL and hope Black tears it up even if i’m skeptical now.

[BtownStrength]

1 hour ago, Stuhoo said:

Sarratt ran a 4.72 at his pro day. 1st rounder Coop ran a 4.42. As a WR.

Anyone have any actual evidence that Kaelon isn’t fast? Because I’m citing a timed 4.45 that says he is.

All of them are quite fast. They all have the capability of being dangerous in the open field, but based on 2025 tape I would say Coop has the most potential to make the breakaway plays (through combination of speed and change of direction). 

[Stuhoo]

26 minutes ago, BtownStrength said:

All of them are quite fast. They all have the capability of being dangerous in the open field, but based on 2025 tape I would say Coop has the most potential to make the breakaway plays (through combination of speed and change of direction). 

I kinda think that Kaelon and Ponds have the best chance of being impactful pros, and that Sarratt and Aiden aren’t quick twitch enough for the next level.

[Demo]

5 minutes ago, Stuhoo said:

I kinda think that Kaelon and Ponds have the best chance of being impactful pros, and that Sarratt and Aiden aren’t quick twitch enough for the next level.

I think Fisher plays a long time as a 4th LB/ST captain who an org can’t bring themselves to cut. Imagine Sarratt will need just the right situation not to be one of those guys who’s always on the edge of being replaced and plays for a million teams.