Jamal Haynes Rated As One Of the ACC's Best Running Backs Heading Into the 2024 Season

Georgia Tech is bringing back multiple starters from one of the best offenses in the country and one of those players is running back Jamal Haynes.

Jamal Haynes was such a great story last season. He made the change from wide receiver to running back during fall camp and that move paid dividends. Haynes earned all-ACC honors as a running back (third team) and was an honorable mention all-purpose performer. He led Georgia Tech with 1,059 rushing yards, seven rushing touchdowns, and six yards per carry ranked second on the team. Those numbers ranked fifth in the ACC in rushing yards and he was tied for sixth in the conference with seven rushing touchdowns and his 6.0 yards per carry ranked third in the league. Haynes had a strong bowl performance against UCF rushing for a game-high 128 yards on 18 carries. He also had a good outing against the Georgia Bulldogs rushing for 81 yards. Haynes was the second highest-rated player on the Yellow Jackets per Pro Football Focus with a 76.9 score and looks primed for another big season in 2024. I think he is in for a huge season and is not getting the recognition he has earned.

According to Pro Football Focus, Haynes is the 6th rated running back in the ACC coming into the 2024 season, behind Pitt's Desmond Reid, North Carolina's Omarion Hampton, Cal's Jaydn Ott, Miami's Damien Martinez, Miami's Mark Fletcher, and Clemson's Phil Mafah.

Highest Graded Returning ACC Running Backs💨 pic.twitter.com/SY5UHwddd9
— PFF College (@PFF_College) May 19, 2024

I think this shows how loaded the running back position is going into next season in the ACC. It was already a loaded group, but Cal's Jaydn Ott is now in the league and Miami was able to land former Oregon State running back Damien Martinez, who was an All-Pac 12 running back with the Beavers. If Fletcher is healthy for this season, Miami might have the most effective duo in the league.

It is hard to find a better group of running backs amongst the power four conferences and all of these players should have nice seasons. Haynes is probably the most underrated of the entire group, but could prove to be the best of the bunch by the time the season is over.