Short Area Quickness
Howard has poor short area quickness. He was occasionally able to make defenders miss by faking them out and cutting across them, but he didn’t consistently display that trait on tape. Making defenders miss with elusiveness will not be a part of his game at the next level.
On the first play above, Howard threatens the outside before planting his foot in the ground and accelerating past a DB who can’t turn to account for that in time. This is one of the most “elusive” plays Howard had, and it’s just a cut up the field.
One place he can win is with short, subtle steps and balance. Elusiveness doesn’t always require flashy jump cuts, and on the second play he does a good job of sidestepping a defender and maintaining his stride.
What’s most likely for Howard’s limited short area quickness at the next level is that he uses it to fall forward. The third play is a good example of where he was able to get behind a defensive back and gain extra yardage by making a cut.
One issue with Howard’s lack of short area quickness is that it hurts him on runs with backfield penetration. The fourth play is a great example of that, where Howard gets wrapped for a loss on the play because he is unable to avoid the defender in the backfield.
Power/Pad Level
The second feature of Howard’s game that makes him a strong interior runner is his pad level. He consistetnly gets his pads down and looks to push the pile. He has great leg drive, and that leads to him falling forward and getting yardage after contact on a consistent basis. This will make him an asset in short yardage situations at the next level.
The first play above is a classic example of good pad level allowing a player to get into the end zone. Howard gets low, knocks a defender back, then gives a second effort to get into the end zone. It’s a great overall effort. The second play is very similar.
The third play shows good pad level again. He gets low, pulls up through contact, then gets low and drives again. The fourth play shows Howard dragging a defender for 10 yards. He probably wouldn’t be able to do that to an NFL defender but Howard is constantly dragging players for extra yardage.
The final play is just an example of what can happen when players lose discipline and don’t get their pads down. Howard consistently shows great pad discipline, and it can be seen throughout almost every play in this breakdown. However, even a player with Howard’s size can get driven back if he doesn’t remain disciplined with his pad level.
