Jeremiyah Love NFL Draft Profile

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Jeremiyah Love Draft Profile

Prospect Information

College: Notre Dame
Height/Weight: 6’ 0’’/212
Hands: 9 1/8"
Age: 21 (at the time of the 2026 season opener)

Important NFL Combine/Pro Day Numbers

40-Yard Dash: 4.36
Vertical Jump: N/A
Broad Jump: N/A
20-Yard Shuttle: N/A
3-Cone: N/A

College Production (Stats)

Profiles similar to: Jahmyr Gibbs (about 10 pounds more than Gibbs' listed weight now)

Plays similar to: Jahmyr Gibbs (with LeSean McCoy's footwork)

Position-Specific Attributes and Grades

AttributeGradeBurst/Explosiveness10.0 (10)Contact Balance8.5 (10)Instincts/Patience/Vision8.5 (10)Power/Tackle-Breaking Ability8.0 (10)Quickness/Elusiveness10.0 (10)Route-Running/Hands9.0 (10)Ball Security5.0 (6)Pass Protection/Blocking4.5 (6)Durability3.0 (4)Long Speed4.0 (4)Film Grade63.0 (80)

Note: my usual format (citing examples for each attribute) does not display well on the site. Please click this link to access them.

Positives

  • Near-ideal build for a running back with relatively little wear-and-tear (496 offensive touches over three seasons) for such a proven commodity in the college game.
  • Home run hitter who was a state champion sprinter in high school; averaged a run of at least 10 yards on 17.1% of his 433 career carries (and a 15-plus yard run on 10.2% of his career rush attempts).
  • Possesses an absolutely lethal dead leg/jump cut that can freeze defenders in the open field; capable of hitting defenders with a spin or a hurdle on any given play.
  • Accentuates his speed and quickness with his patience and ability to anticipate the hole.
  • Utilized as more than just a check-down/screen option, as he was trusted to handle (and win on) option and wheel routes; 63 catches and four drops on 75 career targets.
  • One career fumble.

Negatives

  • While he is certainly capable of running with power and carrying defenders, he lacks the lower-body strength to move the pile very often at this point of his career.
  • Has a tendency to try to hurdle tacklers too often.
  • Eyes will occasionally deceive him on inside runs.
  • Does not shy away from blocking, but will occasionally struggle to identify a game (stunts or delayed blitzes).
  • Despite only one fumble in three seasons, he will occasionally get lackadaisical with his ball carriage.

Bottom Line

Electric and explosive. While there are several parts of Love's game that jump off the screen, the one that might be the most obvious is how instant his acceleration is. The fact he also possesses track speed - the kind that tends to destroy pursuit angles - makes him one of the few running backs in recent drafts who can truly turn every run into a house call. What's more is how violently he can stop or jump cut and how seamlessly he can put a spin on a defender in the open field. He is also very comfortable in the passing game. Notre Dame trusted the Doak Walker Award winner to run routes out of the slot at times and win on option/wheel routes - qualities that are relatively rare for running backs in the college game. In other words, he should quickly become a mismatch weapon in the NFL. While he has work to do in pass pro (exotic looks and pressures will trip him up), he also displayed the ability and willingness to eliminate blitzers often enough to make evaluators confident he will quickly be able to hold his own soon enough in the NFL.

Critiquing Love is difficult from the standpoint that he doesn't have any major weaknesses, so much as he has some minor flaws that come mostly as a result of how strong his strengths are. (We can't expect Barry Sanders and Derrick Henry in the same package, can we?) Love can run through tackle attempts, but the combination of him occasionally running a bit too high and lacking superior leg strength leads him to come up short at times in short-yardage situations. He wlll also carry the ball away from his body (similar to McCoy), which is something the "Peanut Punch"-happy NFL defenders will be sure to exploit if it is not corrected soon. The only other flaw worth mentioning is how willing he seems to put himself in harm's way when he tries to hurdle defenders. While that is not exactly something that figures to be a long-term issue, durability will be a concern for as long as he continues to do it. With that said, Love is a special prospect who is every bit as good as the top prospects who have entered the league over the last five or so years.

This article originally appeared on The Huddle: Jeremiyah Love Draft Profile

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