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The Duel

NFL Draft Odds Reveal Tight Race to Be Drafted First Between Jonathan Taylor and D'Andre Swift

By Tristan Jung

Jonathan Taylor was a legend at Wisconsin.
Jonathan Taylor was a legend at Wisconsin. / Joe Robbins/Getty Images
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The 2020 NFL Draft is scheduled to go ahead on April 23rd, and Wisconsin's Jonathan Taylor and Georgia's D'Andre Swift are likely to be the top running backs off the board. On FanDuel Sportsbook, Swift is favored (-180) to be picked ahead of Taylor (+140).

Swift has earned favorite status thanks to two explosive years with the Bulldogs, which each saw him rush for over 1,000 yards. Swift made first-team All-SEC and rushed for 1,218 yards in 2019. Meanwhile, Taylor was a living legend at Wisconsin, where he set numerous records en route to 6,174 career rushing yards over three seasons.

At the NFL Combine, Taylor led all running backs with a 4.39-second 40-yard dash, but Swift was just behind at 4.48. Both players are downhill rushers that have merely adequate pass catching skills. Swift has a 5-foot 8-inch frame and weighs 212 pounds and Taylor at 5-foot-10 and 226 pounds, giving Taylor a slight advantage in terms of size.

There are some concerns for both as well, as Swift suffered from injury issues in the past and Taylor took on a huge share of carries in Wisconsin. Determining which teams are willing to spend an early draft selection on a running back is a difficult task, but it looks like the Miami Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs could be in the market.

Whichever running back comes off the board first, if we're going off their collegiate careers, both backs should experience some success at the next level.

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Tristan Jung is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Tristan Jung also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username tristan1117. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.