2024 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Arkansas RB Raheim Sanders

Raheim Sanders

Arkansas

Report Grade

Position Rank

1

Overall Rank

30

Raheim Sanders

Arkansas

Player Comp

Projection

Height

6’2″

Weight

237

40 Time

4.47*

Class

Junior

* Projected

RB

Combine Measurables

Arm Length

N/A

Hand Size

N/A

Wingspan

N/A

3 Cone

N/A

Vertical

N/A

Broad Jump

N/A

Bench Press

N/A

Shuttle

N/A

Career Stats

Year	School	Class	Games	Rushing Attempts	Rushing Yards	Yards Per Rushing Attempt	Rushing Touchdowns	Receptions	Receiving Yards	Yards Per Reception	Receiving Touchdowns
2021	Arkansas	FR	13	114	578	5.1	5	11	109	9.9	1
2022	Arkansas	SO	13	222	1443	6.5	10	28	271	9.7	2

Strengths

Elite burst and acceleration with the ball in his hands
Adjusts to the ball to secure passes away from his body
Possesses top-notch vision to find holes laterally after breaking through the line

Weaknesses

Lateral agility to make defenders miss in confined spaces leaves a bit to be desired
Inconsistent ability to separate from defenders on short and intermediate passing routes
Second guesses himself at times behind the line, occasionally missing running lanes

Bio

2024 NFL Draft: Raheim Sanders Draft Profile and Scouting Report

Raheim Sanders, nicknamed ‘Rocket’, first saw playing time in 2021, albeit in a limited role. He had a breakout performance against Ole Miss, where he rushed for 139 yards on 17 carries. He took over the starting role in 2022 and finished with over 100 yards rushing in seven games, including 232 yards versus Ole Miss.

Raheim Sanders 40 Time

Projected 40 Time: 4.47 seconds

Raheim Sanders is a two-year contributor at running back for the University of Arkansas Razorbacks. Also contributes in the passing game, both as a receiver and a blocker. He possesses very good height and good weight for the running back position in the NFL. Our projected 40 time of 4.47 seconds is slightly quicker than the league average at the position.

Sanders displays good vision to find holes laterally, especially after breaking through the line of scrimmage. He has good burst after his initial cut to get upfield quickly and evade defenders in space. Shows very good burst and acceleration to get through the line of scrimmage and explode upfield. Has good contact balance to remain upright through contact at the line of scrimmage, along with solid contact balance out in space. As a receiver, he displays a very good ability to adjust to the ball to secure passes that are placed away from his body. He has shown a good ability to absorb contact and recover quickly in pass protection.

However, he’ll occasionally second guess himself behind the line of scrimmage, failing to progress through some gaps. His lateral agility to make defenders miss in close proximity is adequate. When he’s downfield, he fails to avoid contact by running out of bounds when the area is constricted and defenders are incoming. As a receiver, he displays and adequate ability to separate from the defender on short and intermediate routes along the sidelines. I’d like to see more explosiveness out of the top of his routes.

Recruiting Bio

Raheim Sanders was a graduate of Rockledge High School in Rockledge, Florida, where he played football for head coach Wayne Younger. In high school, he played running back, wide receiver, and linebacker. He was rated a four-star recruiting prospect by 247Sports and Rivals, while ESPN had him rated as a three-star prospect. He scored a 0.9069 in the 247Sports Composite, and was ranked a top-fifteen athlete by Rivals and 247Sports.

Prior to his commitment to Arkansas, Sanders had offers from Miami (FL), Florida State, Oklahoma, and Ole Miss, along with many other programs. He committed to Arkansas on June 8th, 2020, with his letter of intent being signed in December. He was an early-enrollee at Arkansas, enrolling in classes in January of 2021.